How can I wire a 3 way switch with power feeds to another switch? I need help with the wiring for a 3 way switch in my hallway.  One switch box has the power source coming in, the switch leg and 2 Power feeds going out to two other lights.  One power feed supplies the hot for a closet switch in an adajencent room and the other power feed supplies the hot for another 3 way switch that controls a light in the stairwell.

I’m unsure how to wire the switches allowing the 3 way to work for the hallway and the other lights to work properly.

I have spent 3 days and many hours of frustration trying to work this out.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated. A drawing would be wonderful.

To wire to other loads from the box with a 3-way switch and a line feed, you simply identify the line cable, that is, the black line hot (always hot) and its associated white neutral (both being in the same cable).

Then connect another cable to the line hot and neutral routing it to the location you want to power-- connecting black to black, white to white and gnd to gnd. If your current connections are with wire nuts you must unscrew the nut on the line connections, add the new wire and reconnect with the same wire nut or a larger one if necessary.


Can I remove individual conductors from a 12/2 cable to act as jumper wires for a switch? I need small extra wiring to extend from the switch box to the switch. Can I just strip the wires from the 12/2 to do this? Is this against any regulations?

You're talking about a pigtail and it's perfectly OK to shuck down NM cable for pigtails.  (or UF cable if outside).

I'm a little concerned your built-in wires are not long enough.  The wires should stick at least 3" out of the box, although even that is uncomfortably short.  If the box is large enough to get your hands in there, then 6" from entry to the box will suffice, but this too is fairly short.  Electricians prefer more like 8".

Pigtails do not count toward box fill.

If you are having trouble physically packing all the wires into the box, then you have definitely exceeded the allowed box fill.  It's time for a box extension.   A variety of box extensions are made.  For boxes sunk into finished walls, try Legrand Wiremold "starter boxes", which give a 1" or 2" lift to allow you to start running surface conduit off them.  Don't attach any surface conduit.

If the bulky thing that won't fit is a GFCI+receptacle combo device, you only need one GFCI device per circuit, and it can be located elsewhere.  It can go anywhere upstream on the circuit (closer to the breaker panel) - such as another receptacle, a GFCI+circuit breaker combo device, or an added location near the service panel.  I do a lot of the last one.


1960's well has groundwater entering House was built in 1960.  Research shows that concrete 'well house' (pit) was the way it was done then.  But now groundwater is flowing around and into casing.  High flow rate.  Proposed fix is to weld casing so it is 12 inches above ground.  Are there any other requirements for a proper fix?

We are also considering some kind of structure on top of the well, similar to a doghouse to keep junk out of it.

Extending the well casing above ground level is the standard approach, and works fine.

The only reason to put a (doghouse/windmill/wishing-well/lighthouse/etc.) over the extended well casing is for appearance sake (so you don't have to look at the bare well-head sticking out of the lawn.) The cap on the wellhead should do all the "keeping junk out of it" duties, the overstructure is just for appearance, if you choose.

There's absolutely no reason to "abandon your well because it's old and drill a new one" here. The risks and expense of that will be far greater, to no purpose. I presume that you'll be having a well company do the work and they will have the proper parts and experience. If you are a gung-ho home excavator and weldor planning to do the job yourself, you do have a few more parts to buy than just a section of casing. Depending where you are, that may not be legal (my LAHJ requires a licensed well driller for actual work on the well itself.)

Typically the wellhead was put in a "Pit" to keep it from freezing - you need a "pitless adapter" which goes through the side of the well casing and has a dovetail joint sealed with an o-ring that the pipe to the house connects to on the outside, and the pipe down the well connects to on the inside. That keeps the pipe below frost line. Power (assuming a submersible pump) is brought up to the cap. The cap seals the top of the well from entry of debris, and has a small screened vent (unless you happen to have a "real artesian well" where the cap needs to be a complete seal, and you don't need a pump.) It can be opened to access the well for maintenance, pump replacement, etc.


What could be causing me to occasionally hear an arcing sound when toggling a switch? Several light switches in my house occasionally (<2% of the time) make an arcing sound when being switched on or off.  Occurrence is totally random and as far as I can tell, uncorrelated with anything else, including the load or how rapidly the switch is flipped.  I replaced one switch with no effect... The new one exhibits the same behavior.  House was built 1992 and has copper wire.

Any idea what causes this?

If you've replaced most of your lightbulbs with CFL or LED bulbs, they present a more inductive load to your power line than incandescent bulbs.  This inductance, usually caused by a power converter inside the bulb, doesn't like it when the switch opens.

This inductance will actually force current through the switch as it opens, causing a much larger arc than would normally be expected from incandescent bulbs.

You'll also see this on circuits using 12V lighting (some track lighting and other specialized lighting).

The arcing is safely contained inside the switch, but it will wear the switch down over time, presenting a greater resistance in the power path and heating up.  While it will never pose a fire hazard (as long as it's UL rated or similar) it may eventually fail.

If you want to avoid the noise associated with the arcing, get a dimmer that is compatible with all the lamps on the circuit and make sure they are dimmable.  The dimmer switches the load electronically, and even if you never use the dimming feature the arcing will not occur.  However, the same issues are still present and dimmers under these circumstances will wear out more quickly and fail just as the switches would.

You could also replace the lamps and lamp styles to reduce the arcing.  Remove all the lamps, check to make sure there's no arcing (if there is, there are other loads you need to remove, or you have low voltage lighting) and then put each lamp in one by one, testing between each lamp.  You may find that it takes a certain number of lamps (in which case a 20 amp switch might resolve the problem, even though the circuit may only be 15 amps), or certain types or styles of lightbulbs or lamps are the problem.


What primer for bare wood stairs with nails showing I'm painting the stairs going down to my basement that previously had carpet. After removing the carpet, they are like bare, new wood. Unfortunately, the treads were nailed with common nails (not finish nails) and I cannot set them down enough to fill over because that would probably split the wood. My plan is to drive the nails flush and paint over them. Should I use an oil based primer since it will be going on metal nail heads?

They make special paint for stair treads that has anti-slip properties, I would use that. It's typically thick enough top cover the nail heads, but they may work themselves up over time.


Do I need to remove peanut butter/oil stain from unfinished wood before staining? all:  We've installed hardwood stairs in our new home.  Before we've been able to get them stained and finished, my son left peanut butter hand prints on them.  There are now oil stains on some of the stairs.  We plan on staining the stairs a dark brown anyway; should I bother trying to remove the stains before finishing?  If so, what do you recommend?  I've read about various techniques from using mineral spirits to light sanding, and they all sound they'll make the stairs look worse.  Thanks much!

You say a dark stain, which is good, but the peanut oil has already filled some of the space where the stain can soak in. That's bad. You don't want visibly lighter handprints on your steps.
I'd go with rags liberally moistened with mineral spirits. Let them sit on the spots for half an hour or so, then scrub vigorously.
You'll know if you succeeded when the mineral spirits dry off over the course of several hours.

It's best to have some ventilation when dealing with mineral spirits.


Reposition expansion tank I want to re-position expansion tank approx 2m present location is under the bath, the bath is to be removed to allow for installation of a shower, I want to re-position tank in a cupboard adjacent to new shower, basically disconnecting existing fittings and extending all necessary pipework etc. what's the procedure
JG

Provided you aren't moving the expansion tank in relation to any other valves and pressure regulators moving it is fine.
The procedure for doing so is:

Determine the length of new pipe and number of sleeves you will need to move the tank.

My guess is you will be making 2 cuts and thus need 2 sleeves provided the the pipe you are working on is a straight line (one down stream of the tank and one at the place you want to reposition the tank to)

Shut the water off up stream of the site you plan to work on.
Drain the pipes downstream of what you plan to work on.
Cut the pipes
Reposition the tank
Use the bicycle pump valve (Schrader valve) and a bike pump to inflate it to the appropriate pressure (hint: it should be the same pressure as the upstream pressure reducing valve)
Open your upstream and downstream valves to check for leaks and remove any air in the lines.


Generator size for well pump Well, pump and pressure tank installed in 2018, 500 ft uphill from house. Separate grid service to well, with professional installed transfer switch with 4-prong connector for generator. In panel, 2x100 amp fuse from grid switching to 2x30 amp fuse; well pump connected via 2x20 amp fuse; 4 GFI receptacles connected via one 20 amp fuse. Pump is Flowise model 10 gpm, 1.0 HP, 230v (do not know motor manufacturer). Pump is at 145 ft depth and static water level is 24 ft. Would be nice but not necessary to power the GFI receptacles also.

Realistically the smallest generator you can find that has a 240v receptacle is usually rated around 3500w.

For an actual calculation the nameplate rating for the pump would be nice, but it's probably submerged. A typical Franklin 1 hp pump draws about 5A @240v, you need a minimum of 50% overhead for startup, that gets you to 1800w, plus whatever accessories you need in the pump house.

I have heard people having difficulties using cheap inverter style generators with motors, they seem to be too sensitive for inrush. The inrush on a motor under load given an ideal source can easily be 5x the rating during the first couple seconds. I think the solid state circuitry of an inverter has to be protected with less tolerance than a wound rotor generator.


How do I plumb an ADU from a well? I'm planning to put an ADU (accessory dwelling unit) studio apartment over my garage to use as an office / spare bedroom. The garage is about 50ft from the house, and my house is on a well system with a pressure tank in the basement of the house.
I'm unsure what I need to do to run water to the ADU-- does it need its own pressure tank setup, and if so, how does that work with the well pump pressure switch? I can't imagine the house pressure tank would be able to push water that far with any kind of pressure.
Thanks for any advice.

No, you don't need a separate pressure tank. Assuming you are on level ground, getting to a 2nd floor ADU would be about a 10' (?) vertical rise. Water pressure caused by gravity is .43 PSI per foot, so if level land and 2nd floor, you'd loose 4.3 PSI in pressure. Which would  be roughly the same as between the first and second floor of a house.   Flow rate is determined by several things, most notable pipe size....and in your case, pump size and how much the well can produce.
If you are very concerned about this, bigger is better...for an ADU 3/4" pipe would be fine, but 1" would be better.
Also, most pressure switches that control pumps are adjustable meaning you could set it a bit higher to make up for the 4 PSI, but I doubt you'd need to.  Not knowing your specific setup, I can't be sure if it's adjustable or not, but most are.


Can I steal a neutral wire from another circuit? I have some Z-wave light switches that I want to install; below is a link to the diagram for the light switches. Basically I can have all the wiring completed minus the neutral wire for the switch at the bottom of my steps. It will be harder for me to get the neutral from the light than run it in the basement. I have a junction box that is close (4ft compared to 100ft) but it's the living room circuit. Is there anything wrong with tying the light switch that needs the neutral to the living room neutral, based on the wiring is 12/2 and the breaker is the same amperage?

Proposed solution:

Click for larger view

The other answer and the comments are of course correct, but there is a second aspect to it: it won't work.

Actually, it may appear to work, until you try to install a GFCI just about anywhere on either of the two circuits involved.

A GFCI works by comparing the current through the hot wire and the corresponding neutral wire. If those two currents don't match, the GFCI will trip. When you "steal" the neutral from another circuit, the current will go out through one hot wire, but come back through a different neutral.

I actually had an older home where the dishwasher and some kitchen outlet were wired on two different circuits with a shared neutral (that was probably grandfathered in from an earlier era). Trying to bring the kitchen up to code, I was going crazy trying to figure out why the GFCI would trip every time I turned on the dishwasher!


Can I close emt ell in wall? I know that it will be difficult to impossible to fish anything through it later, but can I close up emt in the wall with a 90-degree ell (uncurved)?

It's easier for me to use rigid conduit for this run but there is a section where I don't have the clearance for a curve. I can get wiring in now but I don't want to leave the elbow accessible after I put in drywall.

Something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VYGZWM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Y4vjCbJ2PPE1P

I'm in California.

Short answer:  no, you can't bury a pulling elbow, the cover must remain accessible.

It may be tempting, but really it's better to find another way.

As mentioned in the comments - you could add an access panel in the drywall, and make the pull elbow accessible. You could even hang a picture over the access panel.  You could install a pull box with the cover accessible.


Laminate flooring direction? I am about to pull up carpet and put down laminate in our home. The previous owners installed laminate in the kitchen and dining room.  I am not removing it, they installed it before installing the cabinets! ugh.
Question.  My wife and I are getting conflicting information about the best way to run laminate.  The diagram shows the layout.  I want to run it down the hall and into the living room which is 16x18. She wants me to run it the same way as the original laminate.  Keep in mind we cannot locate an exact match...
Thoughts?

I’d replace the kitchen material or use a different material (like tile). If you must install similar material, I’d Install it in Direction “A”, because:

1) Installing material that is NOT identical in the same direction will look like a “mistake”.

2) Material across a hall will look like scraps were used.

3) Make a bold statement by using a different colored threshold material between the kitchen and living room.


What could be causing this leaky evaporator problem? My apologizes if I do not know the correct terminology for some of the parts. I will try my best though.

We have a Trane A/C system that is causing us a headache. It is causing water damage in our finished basement.

With our HVAC system the airflow is going downward through the unit, with the furnace on top, and the evaporator at the bottom of the unit. Our problem is that condensed water that is supposed to work its way down to the drain pan, instead fly off as random droplets of water and collect at the bottom where there is a large duct that goes from one side of the basement to the other where vents shoot off of that. So at the bottom of this duct the water slowly collects and eventually turns into a puddle and eventually it gets large enough that it will leak through holes in the ducting onto the drywall below it which covers the entire area (you don't see this duct). After time the water works it way through the drywall and then we have a mess.

The HVAC system was installed when the house was built in 2006 by a local company in the Seattle area that does HVAC systems. I believe this problem has actually occurred since the day that we moved in, but since in the Seattle area we do not get hot weather very often, and due to the fact the water had to work its way through the drywall, it took 2-3 years before the water worked its way through to even let me know the problem existed. I have since taken down the drywall around the leak and when looking at the drywall you can see numerous elliptical stains that look like they had been wet and then dried, that is my main reason I think the problem has been happening for a long time.

Unfortunately after 2 years the builder's warranty is no longer in affect, which I feel is unfair due to the fact this probably was most likely happening since the day I moved in. With that said we called the original installer to come out around two years ago to try and fix the problem. Initially they thought it was the drain tube that was clogged up, which it was a bit. So he cleaned that all out and I thought the problem was fixed. Sadly it was not, the problem immediately started happening shortly after their visit. I called them again to come out and this time he cut through on the bottom ducting to look up underside the evaporator and you could see that randomly every now and then a droplet of water seemed to have been flung off of the evaporator down to the hole where he cut. His solution was to cut a piece of sheet metal and put it underneath the sides of the evaporator a bit to hopefully collect the water and force it down into the pan where it would collect and then go out the drain tube. His solution did not work. His next statement I found hard to believe, but he said he thinks that dust is on the evaporator which is causing the water to not flow down properly into the dust pan. I looked up pictures of evaporators and to me this evaporator is about as clean as it can get. He basically said the next step would be to take the evaporator out and clean it for around $1000, or buy a new evaporator.

My question to you guys, do you think he is on the right track? I feel he has absolutely zero clues which is why I did not call him back after this visit because I did not want to waste my money. When I look up diagrams of evaporators it seems like every single one has the air going upward not downward with gravity. That made me wonder if the problem might actually be how they designed this with the airflow going down which combined with gravity might be enough to throw droplets of water off of the evaporator to collect below on the ducting. I have an image of a diagram which shows this, but need to wait until I get some more reputation to include that.

If the airflow was going upward, I could see it making it very hard for droplets to want to fall down since the airflow would be pushing it to stay on the evaporator where it slides down off on to the pan. Do you think this is part of the problem?

I have an image of how ours is designed and will include that later.

The condensate collection works by allowing the water to run down along the fins and collect in pans on either side of the 'A'. Upflow systems work a bit better because the air flow supplements the water's tendency to adhere to the fins, whereas downflow systems tend to encourage release. Typically, even downflow systems collect most of the condensate. One problem that can occur is dirt collects on the fins, causing the water's surface tension to break. Surface tension is what causes the water to run down along the fins instead of straight down.

Another problem, which is probably what you are seeing here, though the others may be contributory factors, is simply just too much humidity. With high humidity, so much water develops of the fins that there is too much mass to be supported by surface tension and the water simply drops straight down instead of running along the fins.

So part of the solution may be to mitigate the contributing factors. If you can cool with a lower air flow, that will help. Change filters frequently, which it sounds like you are doing. Reduce the humidity in the house. This is easier said than done. But short of installing whole house dehumidifiers, be conscious of lifestyle habits that generate moisture and try to minimize it, such as always using exhaust fans when showering and cooking. Clean surfaces with liquids during the cooler parts of the day. Try not to breathe too much :)

I don't think you will fully mitigate the dripping with such measures. Moisture happens, and it will end up on the ductwork. You should consider fashioning the portion of the duct on which the water falls into a wide shallow funnel to collect stray condensate droplets and pipe it off somewhere where it can be safely removed.


Shower silicone caulk keeps failing, options for never fail? So, I have two issues. Both related to the same solution. One shower keeps breaking the silicone seal and then letting water through. The other shower has standing water against the silicone and I'm worries that if this seal breaks it will leak severely.

The tray is up as close to the tiles (3mm) I can get in one case, but pretty gappy in the other tray 3mm-10mm gap.

So, I'm looking for what is the best way to double belt and brace this seal? is there some industrial strength stuff I can use, or could (should) I use expanding foam or grout in the gap before silicone?

You can fill the gap with sealant, then let it set (which might take longer than you think, even a day or two) before doing the actual seal.

For the one where the sealant is failing, there are two main causes - either it didn't stick very well in the first place or the two sides of the seal are moving apart (hence the advice to fill a bath before sealing round it). If there's movement you need to deal with the underlying cause.

If its not sticking very well, cleaning the surfaces with methylated spirit (denatured alcohol) may help.


how to deter children from opening an interior door I have extensive work being done in one of the rooms in the house. For their own safety, I would like to keep curious 3-to-6-year-olds out of that room. The door to the room has no lock, and opens inward into the room.

I will of course explain to the children not to go there, and put appropriate incentives for compliance. However, I do not expect this to be 100% effective, and so am looking for a mechanical solution as well.

Note that the solution need not be 100% effective. For example, if a child needs to fetch a chair to stand upon to unlock the door, that is acceptable. I just want something to protect from impulsive "I am just going to take a small peek, I promise." Because this is only for a couple of weeks, I do not want to install a lock. Ideally I would like not to have to repaint the area either.

I think the most simple solution is this installed close to the ceiling:

Assuming the surrounding paint is white, this really shouldn't require painting since it's one small hole and you could just use white wood filler to make the holes disappear once removed.


Can a dedicated circuit have a junction box somewhere between the fixture and the panel? Whoever installed the central air conditioning unit in my house correctly used a dedicated circuit, however, they cut the wire too short (there is a ~12 inch splice in the panel) and the wire was improperly run through an air return vent. I disconnected the wire from the fixture and pulled it into the house and I would like to eliminate the splice inside the panel which would mean that I would need to have a junction box in the basement and approximately 3-4 feet of additional wire from the junction box to the fixture.

Would this still be considered a dedicated circuit and is it an appropriate amend to the issue?

As long as nothing else is connected to the circuit, even if it traverses a j-box along the way, it is still dedicated.

Kudos, for remediating the duct run.  The splice in the panel isn't best practice, but if terminated properly, is O.K..


Chandelier socket removal for arm replacement Hi I need to remove this light socket from a crystal chandelier I’m restoring. I need to replace one of the arms and I can’t seem to figure out how to get this weird screw loose. Everything I’ve looked up so far tells me to unscrew it but there isn’t a traditional screw it’s this weird Allan wrench shape on one side and completely smooth and flat on the other side. I hope I make sense. I need to fix this quick so any info would be greatly appreciated.

That bracket is riveted on. You could drill it out, but you'll have no good way to reattach it to a new socket anyway. Often candelabra sockets come with pre-attached brackets like that (sometimes threaded for a pipe nipple, other times slotted for a screw - hard to say which that is). Best option would be to remove the whole thing together if possible and try to find a matching one at the hardware store (I know my local store has a good variety of such sockets with attached brackets from Servalite). You shouldn't need to drill out the rivet to remove the wiring.


How to repair door frame from animal damage Previous owners had a cat or some other devil beast. How do I repair this?
Pretty sure I should just buy new moulding... but how do I repair the actual frame? Sand-able wood putty or filler? Any recommendations?

Replace the moulding and get a little wood filler to fill the other scratches the paint. This isn't that bad.
Jonathan


How can I remove an oily stain from raw wood before painting? I need to paint my front porch, but there is a small stain that appears to be oil, grease, or a similar substance. (Water beads on it, despite there being no paint or finish.) Here's the stain in context:

And here is a tight zoom on just the stain itself:

How does this affect the prep or the painting?

Mix a box of baking soda or sawdust with mineral spirits or isopropyl alcohol to the consistency of toothpaste and rub it in with a soft brush, leave for an hour and then hose off.   Preheating the wood with a hair drier or as if in the sun to allow oil to flow easier , then reapply ,  If the stain persists repeat.


How should I restore this painted sandstone bay window? I have a bay window that needs some love.

I think its sandstone and has had several coats of paint over the years. I've scraped all the paint off. Here's where I'm at:

As you can see, it has a few cracks here and there, and the surface isn't particularly smooth after removing the paint.

A property on the same street looks like its had a similar issue, and there they've skimmed the stone with what looks like regular cement.

I was thinking that I'd need to do something similar, but cement doesn't seem like too great an idea as it wouldn't allow the stone to breath.

I'll be painting the stonework again so that it ties in with neighbouring properties. What's the best process for this after I've tidied up the surface?

I'm getting something similar done. Either get a stone mason out to do the job or to give you a quote/some advice. Like you said not a good idea to use cement as it will trap damp and degrade the stone quicker. Use a diamond grinder to get the sandstone smooth and fill in any cracks with lime mortar. Then only use limewash or a good quality mineral paint to finish so it allows the stone to breathe.


Need help understanding power ratings on kitchen range This is the serial plate on my electric range. Why are there 2 rows of power usage. One for 6.9 kW and one for 9.3. Is it possible to determine the amperage from this information? I looked up an online manual for this range and it said it was 20 amp , but I believe that was for the gas cooktop version.

Different electrical systems, same range

On the far right, do you see where it says "208Y/120V" in the first row and "120/240V" in the second row?  Most electric cooking appliances are designed to run off of two different voltage systems, yours included, and that is why they have two ratings.

Figuring out what you have

The easiest way to figure out which of the two systems you have is to measure at the range receptacle with a voltmeter hot-to-hot.  The 120/240V line is the normal split-phase North American residential and light commercial electrical service -- there is 240V (well, 220-250V) between the hots, and 120V hot to neutral.  This system is nice for residential work as it supplies both utilization voltages cheaply and allows heating appliances to work at full power -- 9.3kW for your stove.

However, if you measure 208V (or somewhere between say 190-220V) between the hot lines, you have at least two and perhaps all three phases of a three phase wye electrical service, which uses the "208Y/120" line on the range and is found in large buildings, such as high-rises, large institutional buildings, and industrial facilities, although some very large older homes in the South and Southwest use a three phase service due to the size of their air conditioners.  Three phase service is helpful for larger buildings as it's a more efficient way of moving power around than single phase or split phase.  However, the reduced voltage available at the wall outlet means that heating appliances run at reduced power -- a mere 6.9kW in the case of your stove.

Once you know

Once you know which line to use, simply divide the nameplate power consumption from that line by the line-to-line (hot-to-hot) voltage to get the current draw.


Can I paint over wallpaper? So I have a wall that has a very hard sort of textured wallpaper. Recently though the wall suffered some damage that turned into a hole. The hole has been patched, and now we need to paint over that. Removing the wallpaper is not an option.

How can I paint over this? Should I use an oil based paint or latex based (or does it even matter)? What are some gotchas to avoid when painting over wallpaper?

EDIT: I'm not really too concerned if the texture shows through. I actually like the texture so it's not a big deal.

Of course you can. Future owners of the house will swear at you to no end, but that's their problem, right? ;)


American standard, erosion at bottom of toilet Wondering if anyone has some insight for us. We have a toilet that is only 2 years old. It's an American Standard. The bottom of the toilet where the water flushes the hardest is eroding away (https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ei5EDyNC1fYTKfbS9).

We have very hard water where live, and also due to our daughter sleeping right on the opposite wall of the toilet we often don't flush at night, let pee sit and then flush in the morning.

Could either of these things cause this erosion? If it could be hard water is there something we can put in the tank to help soften it? If the toilet has extremely strong suction power could that do it?

We're going to probably get a warranty replacement, but if we get a new one we want to avoid this happening again. Thanks.

I think @Daniel Griscom is right - that is urine scale building up.
A good overview here.

http://www.drain-clogged.com/urine-scale-in-a-toilet-remove-limescale/

  In general, urine scale in a toilet arises from a chemical reaction.
  Urine scale in a toilet forms when urine + water with high quantities
  of lime reacting chemically with one another.

  Once this reaction is in full progress it will lead to a
  yellow-brownish sediment in toilets or urinals – usually in a rather
  solid form. The lime contained in the toilet water forms a chemical
  bond with the uric acid and the urine, more precisely a lime and
  magnesium compound. The solid substances can then be recognized as
  so-called urine scale sediments. Furthermore, bacteria play a role in
  the formation of urine scale in a toilet. The longer urine scale
  remains inside the toilet, the more difficult it will be to dissolve
  and remove it.

It is a combination of hard water, urine and germs.  I think you need all 3.  Interestingly I think some people with chronic urinary tract infections can get bladder stones (staghorn calculi) by the same mechanism.

Acidification should dissolve the buildup, very eventually.  Various sites recommend turning off the water line, flushing out the water then leaving something acid to sit on the scale.  You could use vinegar but I am also American, and impatient, and if I am going to use acid I want something that packs more punch than salad dressing.  You could get an acidic cleaning product and lay that on there.  If I were doing this I would start with Bar Keepers Friend

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_Keepers_Friend

which has oxalic acid in it and is OK for porcelain.  Plus it is a powder so it will be easy to get it to rest on top of your exposed deposits.  It will take more than one application.  Or you could get some heavy duty acid drain cleaner (look at the label!) and try that.

Or you could scrub it away / chip it away.  That stuff is hard and removing it mechanically will take time.

Then you have to keep it from growing back.  If you don't want to flush you could add one of those products to the tank that suppresses microbial growth in the water.  There are lots of them.


framing in a header. Can I toenail from each side? i am doing a remodel and moved a 2-6 door over a few feet.  the original door has a 4x8 header, so I put in the same.   My understanding is the header should be affixed by 6 16d nails on each side. because the header was put up against existing framing, I can't shoot through the king stud into the header.  Can I toenail three nails per side, shooting through the header, into the king stud?

Yes, toenails will work. In some cases toenails hold better than nails run through the stud into the end grain. The nail head is what does a lot of the work, make sure the heads are set into the surface. It also helps the drywall set better, when you trim the door out you will find what I mean if you don't


Wiring new 'c' wire to heat pump system. Do I need to connect at both air handler and condenser? I am planning on installing a new WIFI thermostat (Honeywell RTH6580WF).  I have a heat pump system (outdoor condenser unit and air handler in attic).  Old thermostat did not have a 'c' wire, but it does have an extra wire in the bundle that I can use.

Do I need to connect the new 'c' wire on both units?  Or will hooking the one to the air handler be enough?

You should connect the C wire, from whichever unit supplies the R wire. Typically it's the air handler, but since you've given no details it's impossible to say for sure.


What are small plywood blocks between flooring and drywall edge? I'm removing carpet and baseboard to install wood flooring. There's a space between the bottom edge of the drywall and the flooring. I'd like to use that space for the expansion gap for the wood flooring.

In that space are periodic little blocks of plywood. I'd guesstimate from memory they're about 3/8" to 1/2" square by 1 to 1-1/4" long. They're not fastened to anything. They don't reach up to the drywall. They just lay in the space.

What are those little blocks for?

They were probably installation supports or spacers for the drywall or the baseboard trim. You can remove them.


Best way to remove textured wall (joint compound)? What I'm working with:

There's a lot to take down. I know skim coating is an option, but I don't think that will work well due to the nature of the texture (it's not knocked down).

Think about 1/4 inch drywall. It can be glued or screwed up and is much easier, faster and neater than trying to take the existing finish down to smooth. You do need to deal with seams and edges at the baseboard, but it is still faster an easier.

Links are for illustration only and not an endorsement of products or sources.


Slow electrical circuits I have a three way light circuit in my hallway that is connected to three ceiling lights. When I switch it on the third light will hesitate before lighting up. Why? Also, I have a different issue with my bathroom ceiling fan. It quit working for a few minutes ( the switch) then it started working again but the first couple of "switch ons" were slow or with a slight hesitation. Now it works fine or instantly again. Is this something that I should worry about? Thanks

If the switches have lost their distinct snap into position feel or if you heard a sparking or sizzling sound when you turned the switch on or off it is highly likely that it is time to replace the switch with a new one.


How to stop downstairs toilet from bubbling when upstairs toilet is flushed? I have a newly installed toilet on ground floor of my house. The drain of this ground floor toilet is connected (in the basement) to the drain stack of the toilet in the attic on the 3rd floor. When I flush the 3rd floor toilet, bubbles come out of the ground floor toilet.

How do I stop my ground floor toilet from bubbling? In general, is it not recommended that you combine drain stacks for bathrooms on different floors?

Here are some details about my house/plumbing:

My house has a basement, ground floor, 2nd floor, and 3rd floor (attic).
The toilet in the ground floor has a ventless drain vent with a STUDOR valve at the end of the vent
The ground floor toilet flushes without any issues, and drains properly

It seems to me that what is happening is when the 3rd floor toilet flushes, the volume of air in the 3 story length drain pipe needs to go somewhere, and it is venting out through the ground floor toilet. Before, that air was going directly into sewer, but now that we added the ground floor drain to it (in the basement), the air is venting through the ground floor toilet. Does this sound correct?

Besides creating a new drain stack for the ground floor bathroom, is there a way to exhaust the air from the 3rd floor drain somewhere?

Thank you for your help!

It seems to me that what is happening is when the 3rd floor toilet flushes, the volume of air in the 3 story length drain pipe needs to go somewhere, and it is venting out through the ground floor toilet.

I believe your observation is correct. The problem is, you have an AAV (Studor valve) on the toilet to vent it. This allows air in but does not allow air out. Otherwise you would get a foul smell from sewer gas.

So, when the upstairs toilet flushes a large volume of water down the vent stack it forces air up through the toilet since it cannot go up through the AAV.

The only really good solution is to add a vent to the downstairs plumbing that goes all the way to the attic and joins the house vent stack there.

So, you can live with the bubbling or install a standard vent for the toilet.

Good luck!


Paint or stain 150 year old door? The door to my house is about 150 years old, and I just had it stripped to get rid of a dozen layers of paint.  My original plans were to prime and paint the door, but it is so beautiful I wonder if it might look good stained?

Below I've got a full size picture and two close ups.  There are holes, scratches, discolorations, cracks etc.  I suppose this is somewhat of a subjective question, but do you think staining the door would accentuate the imperfections or reduce them?

Any tips for doing a good paint or stain job on the door?

Like @Fizz says- the answer depends on getting all the paint out.  Stain will will make the paint spots stick out like several sore thumbs.

A chemical stripper will help, but it is still going to be a lot of painstaking work.  I would leave shallow scratches or pin holes that are paint free as is.  Deep scratches or holes that have some paint stuck in them would get the putty treatment from me.

My gut tells me that the crack in the middle of lower panel is going to be visible no matter what you attempt.  To a lesser degree and depending on how dark the stain will be, the same goes for the gouges around those screw or bolt holes.  Even with a good filler, the ghost outlines will still be there by virtue of the grain being interrupted.

The ghost outlines might be one of those things where you will always notice it every time you walk by, but the average non-obsessed person won't even see it unless you point it out.  If you can live with that, go for a stain.

If you go the stain and filler route, do the research and get something suitable for stain and exterior application.

Good luck- the door looks great.


Turning and tacking carpet where it meets vinyl flooring I had new carpet installed and I had them cut it so I can turn and tack the carpet over the edge of my new luxury vinyl plank.  Now I'm looking for tips on how to get a nice straight carpet edge and what fastener (carpet tack. special stape, etc.  I should use for tacking.  I absolutely do not want to us one of those nasty metal edges.

To turn and finish a carpet edge, you use a carpet "z bar" along with tack strip. It will be nice and straight if you lay the bar and tack strip straight and are careful when trimming and tucking the carpet.

After tacking, you tamp down the z bar to secure the carpet edge. There are other designs besides the one shown in this image. Choose a heavy commercial grade bar. If your intention is to run this up and over the wood plank you will have a hump, most installers would finish it to the edge. My preference is to use a wood transition bar instead of the "nasty metal" type you describe.


What are the steps for landscaping a lawn? I bought my house in 2007, and we inherited a crazy backyard. I'd like to completely redo it, but cost is a big issue. Estimates for a complete landscape are around $30,000, which unfortunately is out of our budget. Since our house has lost quite a bit of value, a HELOC is out of the question.

It's too much work for just one person to do, so I've considered hiring day laborers, and doing it myself.

My plan is to have them remove all green, saving a few apple trees for replanting. But outside of that I have no idea what else I need to do.

Is there a person I can hire to figure out a plan, and coordinate this whole ordeal, or will they have their own personnel?
I have a yard waste recycling bin, but the amount of brush needed to be removed will be more than a single bin full--What are my options for getting rid of the underbrush?
The yard is tiered, and ideally I'd love to level it out. Is this feasible?

A few thoughts...

Talk to some local landscaping companies. You can probably find one that will do a plan for you (for a fee). This will make it easier in that you have something to work from.
For the yard waste, look into renting a chipper that you can feed the brush into and it will spit out mulch. You can use the mulch in flower beds.
If you want to remove tiers, I'm guessing you're going to need to move a lot of dirt. You will probably need to rent equipment for this, unless you are willing to hire some one.

It sounds like you have a really big project in mind. If you are serious about doing it yourself, give yourself plenty of time.


Standard electrical wall mounting box specifications for the USA I was wondering what the standard electrical wall mounting box used for sockets in america was. I was also wondering what the specifications for these boxes were, as well as, the pitch and size of the screw screw needed for the for the mounting holes.

Any information will be great, as i'm not from america.

sizeof(j_box)

Standard North American junction boxes come in a variety of shapes and sizes (round, octagon, square, rectangular); however, most wiring devices intended for junction box mounting, save for light fixtures, are designed around the standard device yoke mounting pattern -- this is defined in NEMA WD-6 (an abridged version can be found here) as a 4.1" by 1.1" metal strap with holes at each end, on the long axis centerline, 3.75" apart and equally spaced from the short axis of symmetry.  The device face itself is 2.78" by 1.625".

Each yoke (save for a rare few large receptacles that take up two gangs) mounts to a gang -- the space in a device box reserved for a single wiring device.  This is how rectangular boxes are measured -- by the number of gangs they accommodate.  Other shapes have a nominal dimension; for square boxes, this is the length of a side, while for octagons and rounds, this is the diameter of the box.

Square boxes (irrespective of size: the smallest square is 4", with 411/16" and a few 5" squares available for bigger jobs) can also be used for devices, using a mud ring or faceplate to adapt the box to the device.  Larger octagon boxes (4") can also mount devices to their faceplates; smaller octagon and all round boxes are reserved for light fixtures, though.

That's not all there is though

Even if two boxes are the same size, they may differ in other characteristics.  Metal boxes are designed for use with metal conduit or metal-sheathed cables, and thus have knockouts that can be removed to make way for conduit or cable to pass into them; non-metallic cables can be used with a metal box with a suitable cable clamp though.  Non-metallic boxes are typically used exclusively with non-metallic sheathed cables, and thus have built in cable clamps but no knockouts, although a few non-metallic boxes have knockouts as they are designed for use with non-metallic conduits instead of cables.

There are also various means of mounting boxes: surface boxes are designed to mount to the surface of a wall and stick out from it (say in an unfinished or industrial area), while new work boxes are designed to mount to wall studs and be flush with the finished wall, and old work boxes mount to the opening in the finish sheathing of the wall made for the box using integral clamps.

Special boxes for special jobs

Ceiling fans and heavy fixtures such as chandeliers are mounted to ceiling fan rated round or octagon boxes that securely anchor to the structure of the building, due to the weight and dynamic loads fans impose on their mountings.

There are also extension boxes that are used to add space to an existing box or protect the inside of material that is added to an existing wall, and larger NEMA enclosures for use in larger-scale (often industrial) applications where standard junction boxes are too tiny, or to mount parts that don't fit into a standard gang or to a standard knockout (such as industrial components that mount to DIN rail).


Interior Platform Steel Tube Framing? I'm building a platform 22.5-23.5" high in a space 88" by 62-64", supports on three side but one free span side for a bed to slide out - the long side, of course. Because of height/width restrictions, space is at a premium, and wood just takes up too much room. I'm looking to save inches and weight wherever possible, but still end up with a platform that is structurally sound with minimal deflection (i.e. 50+psf live load, less than 1/3" deflection across long span).

Various online calculators go back and forth on whether I can use 2x2 steel or need 2x3 steel at 1/4" thick, or whether aluminum at 2x3, 1/4" would suffice. Will 2x2 steel work or 2x3 aluminum? Or stick with steel 2x3, with the long side vertical?

For either steel or aluminum: do I just use another length of same dimensions at sides for beam, and what kind of posts? For welding, as long as it is in the same plane, I don't 'pay' (in height or width, the most restrictive measurements) for extra lateral or bracing support on the platform top; besides corner triangular braces, should I add short lengths between metal joists for more support?

And, finally, how do I attach a plywood subfloor to the top of this frame? Are there brackets that go around 2x3 (or 2x2) that would work?

I would probably still use wood for the beam across the bed opening because it is so much easier to work with. The picture you posted shows a good 6 to 7 inches of space from the platform surface down to the top of the bed opening. This should be more than enough room for beams that can carry the weight.

If your current plan is only allowing for a 3" beam dimension then you should consider the following options.

Arrange for a bed and mattress that are lower so that you can simplify the platform supports by allowing for 5" or 6" beams.
Try trussing the narrow beams along their length similar to the picture below. Trussing like this would be similar to the way that wooden step ladder treads are trussed.


Can I overlay lumber perpendicular to floor joists to raise the floor height? We have put our 2x6s joists down in our bathroom that is 2.45m by 1.45m.
We realized that we are short by about 8cm, so we were thinking, is it a bad idea to put 2 by 6s flat I.e the 6 going horizontal, the 2 going vertical, perpendicular to how the joists are at the moment? Or is this not allowed? And if so, is there a required span?
Plywood and tiles will go on top of this as it’ll be a wetroom.
Please see the picture below.
Also, when I said 2x6s flat I mean like this.

I would say that the main issue with putting down boards like that is cupping or bowing of the wood especially since this is a high moisture area; that's dirt beneath the joists, right? Look at any wooden deck and you will quickly see what I mean by bowing or cupping.
Additionally if you haphazardly layout the boards like that then there will obviously be unsupported areas which will sag as soon as someone steps on it.
I recommend furring up the floor joists by using a table saw to rip 2 inch pieces of wood and attach them directly to the top of the joist.
If you don't have a table saw then you should be able to buy furring strips directly from a lumber yard or supply store.


Glass rod joining/welding: temperature instead of glueing? I have some glass things to fix ("decorative kitchen stuff to play with"). The broken part is a rod, about 8mm diameter, made of some colored glass.

I thought of using nichrome wire, but seems that it can't hot enough to melt the glass. Should I try to connect the broken things with the butane torch lighter?

Some ideas:

make it look ugly, and ugly-repaired. Do not let parts disconnect again at their own will. No dynamic forces would be applied.
...forget about it.
build RepRap and reproduce the thing.
profit.

I doubt this will work. For starters, from what I can see online, depending on what is in it, glass melts somewhere between 2700 and 4200 degrees F (1500-2300 °C). Butane burns at a temperature of 788°F (420°C). You also mentioned nichrome wire - but this too simply will not generate sufficient heat. Nichrome itself melts at 2552°F (1400°C), so it would not be able to transfer sufficient heat to glass without itself melting.

Even if you could heat glass up enough to melt it, thermal stresses can be significant. So you may find that the glass shatters if you did heat it sufficiently. Those craftspeople who do work with glass also have torches and furnaces that are capable of significantly more heat than you can get from any simply source that a handyman can provide.

Just use glue, perhaps a decent two part epoxy to join these pieces together.


Is there a masonry filler tough enough to drill into once it's set Our new home has two old metal gates front and back where the screws mounting the locking points have chipped out of the brickwork leaving large holes (40 - 50mm tall/deep).

Is there a masonry filler tough enough that it will allow me to repair the damaged brick work and redrill the mounting points afterwards?

clean the holes out well with vinegar and water.  then put epoxy dough in the gaps, smooth and point as well as you can.  once cured, drill new holes, but larger diameter and deeper.  then use anchoring epoxy (like redhead a7 or c6) to mount threaded rods.  attach your gates with nuts and washers and you are done.


Static electricity from all of my devices I am not sure that my question is suitable for here but I can't find an answer anywhere.

I live in Europe and I just moved to a new apartment. In my bedroom I have 1 electrical socket. I connected an extension cord to this socket so I will be able to connect my PC to it, screens, phone charge and a laptop charger.

Now, when I accidentally touch the USB connector of my charger or a usb port on my PC or any metal thing that is connected to the socket i get a static electrical shock.

I think that this is because of the grounding but I really dont know.
Is changing the extension cable could help?

What's happening is you are being bit by mains electricity.  And this has happened (so far!!!!) under conditions where mains was not able to flow enough current to murder you.

Those conditions are subtle and quick to change.  If there were higher humidity, if a neighbor turned on their dryer, any number of other things... that same shock could be fatal or maiming.

So I would stop pulling the dragon's tail if I were you!

Put it this way.  "I need to use my PC, though" is less than "I need to not live in a wheelchair for the rest of my life".  continuing using this as-is, is simply not an option.

There are two areas this can occur in.  First, that power service may have a problem.  That's easy to suspect in the old Eastern Bloc particularly, but it's not necessarily true.   Contact your landlord and have him have it checked out.

Second, it can be your own equipment, especially if the equipment requires a ground connection and the socket is not grounded.  Grounding is a safety shield, which is designed to catch wayward current.  The problem is when equipment ground is not connected back to a competent ground back at the service panel and its equipotential bonding, it simply electrifies the grounded chassis of the equipment.

Worse, if several pieces of equipment are all plugged into a grounded power strip, and that isn't grounded to building, then you have what I call an "island of grounds" - so a ground fault on one piece of equipment will share the ground fault with all devices, electrifying all their chassis.

The usual culprit in PC equipment is cheap junk bought mail order, or smuggled in and sold at cheapie shops or flea markets ... in those cases, you're the importer - guess who is responsible for the item complying with CE safety standards! (the importer).

The first workaround is get a plug-in RCD. This will detect fault currents sufficient to kill you (like the one you've been feeling) and trip the power to your equipment to prevent that from happening.  Consider this mandatory to even continue using the equipment.  This will be a good time to not play your hardcore Diablo character :)

I would love to give you a diagnostic tree for chasing down this problem, however it's absolutely unacceptable to be touching the equipment to feel for a shock as a diagnostic method.  Change conditions slightly and it becomes lethal - and the whole point of troubleshooting is to change conditions!

Try getting a €5 "non-contact voltage tester" and see if that will detect on the places you had been getting zapped.

Even so, be cautious of 2 pieces of equipment, one with a ground fault to neutral, the other with a ground fault to hot. Touching both at once can kill you, and the RCD wouldn't detect that.  If you have reversible plugs, that situation could develop simply during unplugging and replugging things. The non-contact voltage tester will only detect ground faults to hot, so you might try flipping it and checking again.

If you have equipment with ground faults, get it fixed.  If it's a PC, only the power supply needs to be replaced.


What standard is this very coarse screw? I was repairing Sony headphones when I saw some screws were missing. As all screws were the same, I took off a non missing screw to see what size and thread it was.

I measured the outer diameter and it was 2mm. I measured the pitch and it was around 0.6mm. What standard is that? M2 would have 3 times smaller of a pitch. What standard is typically used in electronic devices? Where can I find this type of screw?

The type of screw that you describe is a special design with a large pitch on the the threads to create its own threads in the mating plastic part. You can find these at McMaster-Carr  or other specialty fastener supplier.

(Link to supplier page for 6mm length).

(Link to another supplier page for 6mm).


Will this breaker box accept a quadplex breaker? We currently have our AC ran to this breaker box:
GE TL270RCU

It has a 2 pole 30a tandem breaker in there now:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/GE-Q-Line-30-Amp-2-in-Double-Pole-Circuit-Breaker-THQL2130/100356511

We are looking at adding a ductless mini split which would need its own breaker, and from conversations, the box has the capacity to handle the 15a unit, but not the space for another breaker.

I've seen quadplex breakers used for this type of situation, but based on the breaker boxes sticker, I cannot find a quadplex breaker that would fit this.
Does anyone know if/what would fit?

If possible, I'd prefer to go this route vs a whole new breaker box to accommodate the single additional tandem 15a breaker.

Edit: Here is a picture of the breaker actually installed.

This thing is a shut-off switch, basically.

Many air conditioning units have a shut-off switch near them.  This panel is designed to be that, and also provide overcurrent protection, and optionally GFCI.  It is a 2-space "panel" which is designed to fit exactly one 2-pole common breaker.  (any of the THQL THHQL TXQL or QPF types).  It is designed to provide a) a shut-off, b) overcurrent protection, and optionally c) GFCI to a single load.  It'd be a great hot-tub shut-off.

GE's slick design with THQP and THQQP breakers uses a clever way to do double-stuff 2-pole breakers.  Since it uses half-width breakers, it simply uses a 2-pole breaker that sits in the halfway position, one contact on each bus bar.  Any number of 2-pole breakers can be stacked like this, if your panel is wide enough.  which yours isn't.  As such, the only supported 2-pole configuration with these breakers is the 2-pole THQP sitting in the middle, in the 2-3 position, with a half-width breaker on either side.  You cannot handle-tie the two outside 120V breakers because GE is quite specific that these breakers have an internal common trip mechanism.  Handle ties only assure common shut-off, not trip, so one side tripping could leave the other side energized - bad!

However GE doesn't seem to make a quadplex 2-pole for it.  That makes sense. The whole selling point of THQP is to avoid the duplex/quadplex model entirely.

The bigger problem is your wiring.

This really nags at me:  Why would someone run 6 AWG to a shut-off switch to a single 30A load?  Makes no sense.  An installer would install 10 AWG throughout, unless he was some sort of visionary genius, and if he was, he'd have installed more than a 2-space "panel"!  So I deduce the wire back to the panel is probably 10AWG and cannot support a second circuit. You would need to replace it with 6 AWG to support a 23-30A main air conditioner and a 15-20A auxiliary load.  In fact, in some conditions 12AWG would be legal here!

Given that you may have to replace all that anyway...

...you might go ahead and replace that tiny panel

Normally changing panels is a bugbear, but you've only got 2 cables coming in/out of it so far.  So now's the time.

I recommend people get 2-3x the panel they think they need.  In your case since you need 2 240V circuits (4 spaces), I'd say go for a 12 or even 20 space panel.  Panel space is cheap, unlike regrets, and panels often come with free breakers!


Spot light LED bulbs (MR16) flash once when turned on. If I put 1 normal halogen in then it solves the problem. Why? I have 5 spot light bulbs in my bathroom. All use MR16 connection. I replaced them all with 5w LEDs and when I turn on the switch they flash once then go off. If I remove one so there's only 4 then the same thing happens. However, if I put one of the old halogen 20w bulbs in then all the LED bulbs stay on and everything is fine.

Why is this happening? And what can I do to get rid of that last halogen and replace it with an LED?

This symptom is impossible without silicon electronics being involved in the delivery of power. Passive wires and windings are not capable of causing this.  Common problems are common, and my first take is usually correct - a series connected old-style smart device.

But Carl Witthoft has an interesting theory: these are probably low voltage bulbs.  We know voltage is right because the LEDs do work properly when power is available.  That's not surprising, since many LED products use constant current power supplies in switch mode, which can easily accommodate a range of voltage.

Most low voltage power supplies are passive, or at least well behaved.  So I normally don't think about them.  It would certainly explain everything if you had one that was "too smart for its own good".  The five LEDs should draw power comparable to one halogen (at least on half the AC cycle... since the D stands for "diode"). So there's clearly something a little more sophisticated going on.  I could see some power supply designer thinking himself oh, so clever for adding a protective circuit that shuts the supply off if it doesn't detect any halogens.  To be fair, LED lighting is a very new concept.

For reference, the usual cause - and my first guess - and the one to apply if this proves to be 120VAC circuit -- relates to dimmers, sensors and other smart devices designed to substitute for an old switch in a "switch loop", where there is no neutral.  These devices place themselves in series with the bulb, and power themselves by letting some current flow through the circuit when the light is "off".  This depends on particular characteristics of incandescent (and halogen) bulbs.  It often doesn't play well with fluorescents and LEDs.  This is why Code now requires neutral in switch loops - so a new generation of these devices can power themselves directly off hot and neutral.  For this, the answer can be to roll back to a plain switch - unless neutral happens to be in the box, in which case use a modern device.


Drilling rebar hole in 12" concrete footing My deck has 6"x6" wooden support posts sitting atop 12" diameter concrete footings.  The tops of the concrete footings are about 16" above grade.  When I inspected a little below grade, I discovered the 12" diameter footings end just 2-3 inches below grade, but they seem to be poured on top of 6" diameter concrete footings.  The 6" footings completely underground, and have an unknown depth.  The deck over the posts shows no sign of settling/heaving however, and the deck appears to be at least 10 years old.

The wooden posts appear to have no attachment to the 12" pillars: one of the posts has shifted to the edge of the 12" footing.  I would like to attach the posts to the footing using a rebar post holder by drilling a hole in the center of the footing, and using epoxy or some adhesive for the holder.

My concern is that the footing may crack during drilling.  Is this much of a risk for a concrete footing this size?

Drilling with a rotary hammer at a high speed with low force should not crack the footing, assuming it's in good condition.

I wonder why the one post has moved, though, and the others haven't. Is the structure that loose? You might just repair and bolster the framing and not worry about anchoring the post at the footing.


Why does turning on one light turn off a different light? I have a ceiling fan with a light and another light with switches on opposite sides of the wall. One side has a double switch which goes to the fan with a light and the other a single three way switch which goes to a light in the pantry. They both run off the same power. When I turn on one switch to run the light on the fan the light on the other side of the wall goes off and vice versa.

How do I fix this problem?

You mentioned having a 3 way switch for the pantry.  Is there actually a second switch somewhere that is also supposed to control the pantry light, or did someone just throw in a 3 way switch in a situation where a normal, single pole switch would have worked?  How many screws are present on the switch that controls your fan and fan light, not counting the green grounding screw?

Where does the power enter this circuit?  It could enter the box with the double light switch, the box for the pantry light switch, the box the fan is mounted on, or the box that the pantry light is mounted on.

Helping you rewire this mess to work properly is going to require detailed information about exactly what wires are present in each location.  There are several "right" ways to do the wiring in this situation, and picking the RIGHT "right" way for you will depend upon what wires are already present.

I'm going to go out on a limb with one possible answer to your question.  Just keep in mind that it's only a guess since I don't have all of the information needed to know for sure.

You know how a duplex receptacle has 2 sets of connections on it, and you can run power in to the top two screws and out through the bottom two screws and on to the next outlet, right?  Well, it may be possible that some very inexperienced person in the past saw a 3 or 4 way light switch and thought they could do the same thing.  If they tried to daisy chain the power between light switches the way you would do it between receptacles, and they chose just the right (or, in this case, WRONG) way to attempt it, it could lead to your current situation.

In any case, the situation needs to be fixed sooner rather than later.  The fact that your lights are functioning this way indicates that whoever did the electrical work had absolutely no idea what he was doing, and he VERY likely created unsafe conditions in your home.  If you aren't up to making a diagram of the current wiring configuration for us to look at here, then you really, really need to get an electrician in to sort out your problems before your house burns down or someone gets electrocuted.


How should I prepare a steel door for painting? I have two typical steel entry doors that were factory primed. They were installed 8 years ago in a new addition on my home. I am finally (!?) getting ready to paint them.

The interior finish paint (that is already on the trim) is oil-based semi-gloss.
The exterior finish paint will be latex.

I am unsure of three things:

Obviously I should clean the doors thoroughly - but with what? Is soap and water OK?
Is any additional primer needed due to the 8 years of exposure?
Is any additional primer needed for oil paint (which is now uncommon, sadly)?

You might need to use more than soap and water - but that would be a first step. However, you don't want anything too harsh. Just makes sure that the surface is completely dry before painting.

An additional coat of primer might be worth it - but only if there are any places where the original primer has rubbed off or you have knocked the door. Places where the metal has been exposed should be sanded to remove any rust.

If the primer is sound then you should only need to undercoat before applying the gloss to give the finish some "body". I normally end up with 2 coats of top coat to give an even finish.


Is it code compliant to vent my bathroom exhaust through the turbine vent in our attic? My contractor wants to vent our bathroom exhaust fan by connecting tubing to our attic turbine vent (aka whirly bird) to exhaust it to the outside instead of plumbing it to the outside through the roof.  Is this up to CA codes?  This seems like a short cut.

Your contractor is lazy. The best solution is through the wall (though not near an eave), but if that is not possible, a dedicated vent in the ceiling is necessary.

If there is no wind, dumping the hot moisture-laden air into the whirlybird will just put it back into the attic.


Replacing/repairing old box window We have an old box window in the kitchen (opening is about 58'' x 44.75''). They are double windows and both sides have cracks so we are thinking about different options to replace or repair them. Does it make sense to repair them? Or should we invest in new box or bay windows? What are rough costs of different options?

Repair will certainly be much cheaper than replacement. I recently installed a new garden window, which was oly 32x36" and the window cost over $600. Yours is even bigger. I'm guessing a local glass company could replace the broken glass for ~$200 or less--certainly no where near the cost of a complete replacement. Good luck!


Mounting a shelf into concrete, with two non-identical anchors (brackets) I have a wall shelf that I'd like to mount into a concrete wall. Unfortunately, due to a mistake I ended up with two different anchors (not sure what the term is - I think it's anchor, bracket, or chevron) - see picture below.

The shelf is going to only hold light items (less than 2kg load), and will not be easily seen. Slightly-unsightly-aspect aside, is this likely to be a (structural) problem? Should I get two identical anchors/brackets/chevrons, or is it OK to proceed with these two different ones?

Only you can decide if you can live with building a shelf with mismatched brackets like that. To me it would look like a major hack even if it was in the back of the garage or in a closet.

From a structural standpoint there should be no problem with the mismatched brackets as long as they mounted properly so that the resulting shelf surface was level and both brackets have more than enough capability to bear the load that you intend to place on the shelf.


Ridge vent conversion creating heat problem I have a classic 1964 rambler. I recently had a new roof put on and additional insulation blown in to bring the R factor to 40. The contractor recommend replacing the original venting with ridge vent.
The first day the outside temperature was above 75, the entire house was cooking. Before the new roof was placed, it had to be above 80 degrees for 48 hours to create this kind of heat inside. We haven't started our summer season and if this is bad now, it will be unbearable then. They made no adjustments for additional soffit vents. Is this the reason? Shouldn't the additional insulation help keep the heat above the ceiling? Are there any steps I should take to improve the venting?

This is a horrible problem to have, and yet you will encounter many who will insinuate that you are crazy for suggesting it. Hold strong: you are not crazy. The problem is real. More insulation is not always better in all situations for all climates at all times of year irrespective of ventilation. Ignore people who claim this. They have never personally experienced this phenomenon, as you and I have.

Here's what's happening: The added insulation is indeed slowing down the heat transfer, so less heat is entering your house during the day. However, the amount of diminished heat transfer may be a lot less than the sticker R-value might suggest due to a multitude of factors, and poor design or installation choices made during the work may actually have resulted in more heat gain. Here are some options for you to investigate:

Attic ceiling not air sealed; hot attic air can go right through the insulation and into the house
Uneven insulation application; heat movement barely diminished in some areas
Scammy contractors didn't blow/add as much insulation as you paid for; R-40 attic floor insulation is about 11" deep if it's all cellulose and 15" deep for fiberglass. If it's shallower than that, you got robbed!
Use of fiberglass, especially on the top layer; fiberglass is more air-permeable than cellulose, and slightly IR-translucent, which means the the infrared heat transfer from the roof decking is not getting blocked as well as you might expect
Potentially darker roofing material dramatically increases the amount of heat that the attic receives throughout the day
You said they "replac[ed] the original venting with ridge vent." What was there before? Gable vents? Turtle vents? This matters, because if you live in a windy area and/or if your roof has a low pitch, then turtle or gable exhaust vents may be more effective than ridge exhaust vents
Contractors might have clogged the soffit vents, and if there are only a few of them, then they may not be sufficient to provide enough air for the new ridge vent
The house now cools off less at night because of the insulation slowing down heat transfer out of the house once the attic cools down to below the indoor temperature; the insulation is working against you after the sun goes down!

So, what do you do? Here are some options, presented in ascending order of cost and hassle:

Once the sun goes down, open the windows and turn on your bath fan to cool the house
Ensure that soffit vents are unblocked
Ensure that the ridge vent was installed properly and is not blocked by anything
If the insulation is uneven or lumpy, smooth it out
Add more soffit vents
Add a solar-powered attic ventilator, and face the solar panel west if at all possible. Western sunlight is your enemy; use it to your advantage by having it power a fan to exhaust the hot attic air (note: only do this once you have air-sealed your ceiling/attic floor)
Add gable vents (if applicable)
Staple a radiant barrier under the rafters
If the top layer of insulation is fiberglass, add a few inches of cellulose insulation over the top of it
Lay a multi-layered radiant barrier OVER the insulation on the floor (note: must be multi-layered, such as http://insulmation.stores.yahoo.net/thcome.html (no affiliation), since the top will get dusty so there must be additional layers that dust will not settle on)
Add a whole-house attic fan and run it as soon as the sun goes down (note: only applicable in a dry, mountainous climate, and make sure it has insulated doors that are closed during the day)
Replace the roofing material with something lighter-colored and preferably made out of metal, installed over ridge-to-eave purlins to create over-sheathing ventilation channels


How to move from RH/RC thermostat to C thermostat in AC only system? I see this is a pretty common question, but the answer seems like it might be dependent on your thermostat and air handler, so I'm posting with my specific questions.

I'm upgrading from a White Rodgers thermostat to Honeywell RTH9580WF. The Honeywell requires a C wire.
My old White Rodgers thermostat does not have a C connector. It has a wire from the air handler switchboard to the thermostats RC and is has a jumper to RH.

(air handler) - (Thermostat)
W - W
Y - Y
G - G
R - RC jumper to RH

I can see on the air handler that there is a COM 24v which I believe is C (COM = Common = C, right?)

There is a second 18/4 wire hooked into the air handler (C & Y). I'm not positive where that line runs, but it looks to follow the coolant line, so maybe to the condenser outside?

We only use this system for AC. I don't know if that impacts my situation at all, but I see lots of discussion on how things relate to heat, so I wanted to point it out.

I was reading about the various wire's uses in this thread.

It says RC/RH are for Cooling and Heating calls, but common is seperate, so does that mean I cannot just move the red wire from RC in the old thermostat to the new thermostat's C? (I assume no, since it travels to the R in the air handler , and not the C).

It seems like my only recourse right now is to either run new wires, or to move one of the existing 4 to the C.
I saw in other threads, and this honeywell video they moved the Green wire from G to C which takes away the manual fan option, which I think would be ok provided the fan still can be called when AC kicks on.

Am I understanding things correctly? If not, please correct me.
Does moving G to C make sense in an AC only system?
Would it make more sense to just run new wires?
Do I need to do anything with the extra 18/4 that's hooked up to the air handler as it is?

(Also, I keep referring to it as the air handler because that's how I keep reading about it. If it's called something else when it's used for AC only, let me know so I can speak to it correctly.)

Run a new cable with at least five conductors. Connect a wire between COM 24V, and the C terminal on the thermostat.

The cable that connects to Y and COM 24V, goes out to the outdoor unit.

If the indoor unit only blows air, and doesn't add heat. It's called an air handler.


Can I hard wire two LED shop lights to one power line? The room where my boiler is located is currently lit by a simple porcelain lampholder with a switch in the wall. The lampholder is located somewhat near the middle of the long and narrow room. About 10 feet long and 3 feet wide.

I'd like to replace it with an LED shop light that has a short wire coming out the side for hard wiring. (See image below)

My question is: can I wire two shop lights directly to the line source? In other words, can I wire nut 3 wires together (3 black, 3 white, 3 grounds)? Do I need to use the same type of light or can I use different kinds? The wires would all be in the existing ceiling box, covered with a plate that has a hole in the center to allow the light's wire to come through.

Yes, that's fine.  They don't need to be the same.  I mean, one could  be a humdifier unit even.  Just bring the wire in a knockout on the side, and use a listed cable clamp of the type that screws into a knockout.  Don't drill a hole in the box cover, don't hack or homebrew it.

If there are also receptacles on this circuit, make sure the hardwired loads on the circuit don't exceed 50% of circuit capacity.


How to best secure claw foot tub feet In my new home, there is a cast iron claw foot bathtub with poorly attached feet. The feet are slightly wobbly and one of them falls off any time the tub moves at all. So far it has not fallen out with anyone in the tub, but it fell off several times while I was working on the drain line. What is the best way to permanently attach these feet so that they will not unexpectedly fall off?

The weight of the tub seems to be the main thing holding them on now. The pictures below show that it has a locating and fastening feature on the bottom of the tub, but there is nothing that securely clamps to that. I can remove and reattach them without loosening the screws. When I have my wife lift up on the tub I can tug them into place and the leg pops in with a loud snap. The 3 better legs can be removed by working them back and forth enough. The worse leg can be removed just by lifting up on the tub and wiggling it a bit.

It looks like part of the retainer has snapped off here

It may be possibile to have a new retainer fabricated or to have these repaired.

If all the feet have broken retainers take a gel cast of the attachment and then from that make a plaster cast so that the welder has something to fabricate a part to match up with. Alternatively you take the whole tub instead.

Two-part xpoxy glue is probably an easier solution and will probably last long enough to not be a problem.


Connect A 3 way swotch to an existing three way switch I have a 3 way switch (switch A) that controls a device. I have another three way switch (switch B) that is not connected to anything. I would like to connect switch B to switch A so that it can be part of the same circuit, and control the same device. Is this possible?

You will need to run 4 wires and a ground between the switches,

the neutral which will be capped off due to code reasons

2 travelers which will be connected to the other switch

and a live either from the power source or to the light

and finally the ground to the ground screw.


Is there a practical, inexpensive way to track power usage by source? My electric bills have been extremely high for the past year or so.  We recently finished an entire basement, put in a heated pool, installed a year-round heated spa, bought (and sold) an electric car, and switched from a gas water tank to an electric on-demand water heater.  There are many possibilities as to what's causing the increase, but far too much noise from everything happening at once to logic it out.  There is also a possibility that I'm wasting power somewhere unnecessary, since by all my calculations we still shouldn't be using this much.

I have seen "home energy monitor" devices that hook up to the fuse panel.  However, these are very expensive ($300-$500), and even more so once you factor in the cost of an electrician for installation ($100+).  I've also seen varying reports of success with them.

Is there a way using more common or inexpensive tools to accomplish something similar?  Some way to track usage by device or room at the fuse panel?  Tracking individual outlets is not a solution as I expect the largest energy consumers are not plugged into standard outlets.

The low cost "plug-in" energy monitors are actually quite good, but are limited to devices that plug-in. As soon as you want to monitor devices that are hard-wired like your pool, spa, water heater and electric car charger, you are going to have to have something installed by a licensed electrician if you are uncomfortable with working on your household power system.

The clamp-on device shown will not show you "Power"(watts), it will only be able to show you Current, which is a COMPONENT of Power (W = V x A x Power Factor). For the devices that are only resistant heat, like your water heater and pool heater and spa heater, Power factor is 1, so you can safely estimate Power by assuming the Voltage and measuring the Current. But for the pump motors and the car charger, there will be Power Factor involved and you need specialized metering to read it correctly, otherwise you are just guessing.

A very INDIRECT way of determining consumption of any given device is to use your utility metering in the following way.

learn how to read your utility meter. Most utilities will provide you with instructions, often on a web page.
Turn EVERYTHING off in your entire house, EXCEPT the load you want
to measure
Record the Watt-Hours at the start, and again in exactly 1 hour. For the pool and spa, make sure you are doing this under the worst case scenarios; the pump is running, for example during the filter time frame, AND the heater is called for because the pool/spa cooled down. The same for the Spa. You can "force" this by turning them off for a few hours before hand (but check to see when your filter runs, often they are scheduled for off-peak hours). That energy (Watt-Hours) will give you a general idea of how much power you are using per hour of run time.
In the case of your car charger, do the same; plug it in and turn it
on when you know that the car needs charging.

Unfortunately, you will not necessarily know exactly how many HOURS per day these things actually run. That's where a sub-metering system comes in handy. It will record the actual Watt-Hours they use in a given time frame. that takes more sophistication, hence the added cost. There are by the way some companies in some areas that own this equipment and will perform an energy audit for you for a fee, likely less than the cost of buying the equipment. In some places, like mine in California, the utility will do that for you if you ask. might be worth checking into.


Question about foundation and door of my house I am recently ready to buy a house from a friend. house looks ok. but after foundation engineer checking. he told me front left side of the house is around 6 inches higher than other parts of the house. in that room, the door is hard to open and close. he said foundation did not need immediate repair but he could not tell me what gonna happen in the future. i took some pictures of that room and share here. see if anyone and give me idea what i can do. or how much chance i may need repair foundation in the future. house was built 2007. i am in mississippi, here the yazoo clay frequently made house foundation problems.

[

Your question "how much chance i may need (to) repair foundation in the future" cannot be answered, because whether or not you choose to repair it is a choice only you will be making. The homes in my area have extensive history of foundation and slab floor cracking and movement due to expansive soil. Some people choose to take steps to remedy the movement, some live with it and engage in continuous plaster and stucco repair and trimming/rehanging of doors.
My home was built in the late 1950s and has undergone repeated wall, door, and floor repair, and a corner of the house has subsided considerably, but I have not yet seriously considered a full foundation rehabilitation.

Your question "what i can do" could best be answered by the foundation engineer you already spoke with. Strengthening and reinforcing a foundation on expansive clay soil to prevent future movement is possible and, in fact, is done frequently. None of the various methods is easy, cheap, or non-invasive.


Honeywell Chronotherm IV Plus thermostat The word "filter" is flashing on thermostat. The filter is clean. What should I do?

The thermostat doesn't actually have a way to check your filter to see whether it is clean or not. The flashing "filter" turns on based on time - every 3 months. Resetting it (look in your manual) will make it start flashing in another three months.


What is the easiest method to fish cable through the ceiling? I need to fish some speaker wire through my ceiling downstairs to the lower part of the adjacent exterior wall. To compound the problem, the ceiling joists run perpendicular to the direction I need to run the cable. I have a feeling I already know the answer to this, but is there any way other than cutting several holes in the ceiling to drill through the joists? The run is about 10 feet.

EDIT

The ceiling is a smooth drywall ceiling. The joists are I joists.

Consider through the crown molding, or installing some to hide the dable.  See my response to wiring rear speakers


Building new shower, how can I control the flow of water to two different shower heads? Similar to how you can control the flow of water between a tub faucet and a shower head, I'd like my new shower to control water between a rain-head shower from the ceiling and a handheld shower on the wall.

Can I buy a shower kit that contains a shower head, temperature valve, and tub faucet, and just use it differently somehow? Or is there a better way?

What you want is called a "Diverter Valve".  That will give you something to search for, because you will find all different types depending on they style you want and how many shower heads it needs to handle.  And example can be seen here:

http://www.signaturehardware.com/three-way-in-wall-shower-diverter-lever-handle.html


Paint liquifying around cooker: solution? I applied "One Coat Matt Emulsion" paint on my kitchen's wallpaper (can't remove the wallpaper).

When cooking though, the paint in the area around the cooker starts liquifying so that if you swipe a finger it comes wet with a bit of paint (10% paint 90% water maybe).

Should I apply another coat of something? If so, what exactly?

My bet is you used a water-based latex and the wallpaper has some oil in it (being over the stove there's a good chance it absorbed oil over the years). What's happening is the heat and humidity are driving the water back into the paint, and the oil in the wallpaper is interfering with the adhesion.

Two things I would do.

Get an oil based primer (like original Kilz). It should help the adhesion of the paint to the wallpaper. Oil based should adhere, regardless of what's in the wallpaper
Put a semi-gloss enamel over it (can be water based latex). The "gloss" part of the paint will better resist the water getting into it


Why is my fridge causing my lights to dim? We've been having problems with our lights dimming recently.  We've had similar problems with bathroom fans slowing, plus the TV and dishwasher will reset.

I have a suspicion that it caused by the fridge.  It's been making bad motor sounds and freezing up.  When we unplug the fridge, it seems to stop our issue with the lights dimming.  When we plug the fridge back in, the lights immediately dim for a second and then the periodic light dimming starts back up.

My question is whether a fridge can draw enough power to cause dimming throughout the house.  I know there's an initial surge when you plug in a big appliance, but shouldn't it immediately settle down?  If it's causing further periodic dimming, then is there something wrong with the fridge?  Or could this be a wiring issue?

I know this is hard to diagnose from afar, but looking for some opinions to point me in the right direction (new fridge or call an electrician).

I agree with Aviator, the electrician is the safest bet. From your description though, it sounds like the Compressor motor on the fridge is either seizing up or has a short in the motor winding. Why it is not tripping breakers or blowing fuses is a concern worth looking into. A qualified electrician will be able to put an amp meter on the Fridge and measure how much current draw there is and determine if it is pulling too much.
Only two general possibilities really exist. either the Fridge is pulling too much, or your panel is not providing enough. or the two combined (okay, 3 possibilities)...


Why is my breaker tripping after hooking dishwasher back up? I had to move my dishwasher, and in order to do that I had to disconnect it from power. I made a mental note of where the wires were before I disconnected and then put them back when I was done. Now, when I turn on the breaker for the dishwasher, it immediately trips. I replaced the breaker and it is doing the same thing.

I would suggest when reconnecting it the must be a short somewhere. Check all the cables are neat and terminated correctly and neatly.


How can I seal a slate floor for long term protection? I've recently purchased a house in Philadelphia which has a pretty humid basement split into a finished part, and an unfinished (workshop) part. The finished part has a slate floor that seems in reasonable condition, but it is requires some grouting. In a few places there are loose tiles and a few small parts where a layer from the corner of a slate tile has come off.

I suspect the previous owner may not have a performed any recent maintenance or sealing. I'm probably going to get a specialist, but what should I be looking for in terms of products and approaches to sealing this floor? I'd prefer to keep a more natural look. Given the hot and humid weather here in Philly I suspect I'll need to wait until spring or fall to do this work as the basement is my office space.

If you're regrouting I highly recommend epoxy grout.  It's impermeable and doesn't have to be sealed.  I'm never using regular grout again.  I've done some myself, and have also asked pro tile setters to use it even if they haven't before, and haven't had problems with that.

Here's the post that turned me on to it for more info on market options


Why is sanding required between layers of lacquer paint? Some context for the question in the title:
After years of fixing stuff around the house, I've developed a chronic form of sinusitis - the minimal amount of dust is enough to set me off. I do use a serious protection mask when working, but even the dust that remains in the air or the settles on the mask/face will affect me.

So I'm figuring out ways to do dust-free DIY.

Next up in the TODO list are a couple of wooden doors and window frames. I would like to give them a new layer of primer + lacquer on top of old (yellowish) but good state lacquer.

The product instructions insist on sanding after the primer and between layer of lacquer.

Why is that necessary? and what would be the consequences of not doing so?
Are there any alternatives?

As @Nick2253 commented, sanding between coats promotes better adhesion of the next coat. This occurs because a rougher surface has more area and "features" for the next coat to grab onto. That's why it's easier to scrape paint off of a smooth surface like glass than a relatively rough one like wood.

Sanding also helps remove any bumps from dust that's settled on the surface before the paint/lacquer/poly dries.

Since you're worried about dust, you could see if wet sanding is an option for the type of lacquer you're working with. Otherwise, know that "sand between coats" generally means a very light sanding which won't produce as much dust. You obviously don't want to sand heavily enough to remove all or most of the coat you just applied.

For poly, I sand with 220 or 320 grit with a hand sanding block between coats. The pressure I apply is basically the weight of the block, and I only make one or two passes. Most of the dust created is easily wiped up with a damp rag afterwards.


Should I put a dimmer switch on a ceiling fan? I have a ceiling fan on our bedroom's vaulted ceiling. Since we don't want 7' pull-cords, the speed is stuck at full-tilt, which is no good. The fan has separate switches on the wall for lights and fan on/off, though, so I tried putting a dimmer switch on the fan. Can that do any damage to the fan's motor, or is there anything else I'm not thinking of that could be a problem? I've noticed the fan makes a little bit of a groaning noise when I have the rheostat down, but since I've never heard the fan at slow speeds, maybe that's normal.

Check the fine print
To find out if the dimmer can work with the fan, you'll have to inspect the dimmer.  For this, you'll have to remove the cover plate and possibly pull the switch out of the box (in which case, make sure you shut off the power at the breaker). If you see the text "For Incandescent Only"; or something similar, you should not use this dimmer with a motor load.

Using a standard dimmer with a ceiling fan can damage the motor, and/or cause the dimmer and/or motor to overheat and cause a fire.
There are a few better options available to you.
Install a fan control switch
There are many different fan control switches available; with a wide range of styles and functions, you should have no problem finding just what you want. A simple control like this 3 speed fan control, will run you about 20 bucks, and installs using the existing wiring.

Install a remote control
If you're up for a bit more wiring, there are universal remote control kits available.  You'll have to wire the receiver into the fan housing, so it's a bit more complicated than installing the wall control. But once the receiver is installed, you can place the wireless remote anywhere you like. There are a ton of these things available, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding one you like.  You can even get a cool touch screen control, if that's what suits your fancy.

Install a new fan
If installing a new fan is an option, you could simply select one that comes with a remote control.


What is this low-voltage thing on my attic light Today I was in my attic checking out a ventilation issue (which I may post a separate question about). While up there, I noticed this strange electrical box mounted next to the light in the attic. There is low-voltage wire connected to it, running somewhere else. I'm unable to trace it back to it's source due to insulation in the attic. What is this? Please see all pictures at the link below.

https://imgur.com/a/PrFfo

It's a transformer (converts from normal household voltage to low voltage.)

Turn off power to that light (i.e. find the breaker that shuts it off) and then try to ring the doorbell.

Certainly that wire appears to be the normal doorbell wire, and doorbells are a very normal thing to be fed off such a transformer.


Should I paint the exterior wooden trim on my home if it's peeling? I would like your advice on whether I need to repaint the timber exterior of my 2nd floor balcony. The house was built in 2008, so the paint job is about 12 years old. In this part of the world, it can get to around 0 degrees (32 F) in winter, at night. It can get to around 40 degrees (104 F) in summer, during the day. It does not snow, but it can rain against this side of the house. It is South facing (in the Southern hemisphere), which means it only gets direct sunlight for ~2 months of the year, during summer. However, this is when the sun, UV, and heat are at their highest.
The paint is pealing in places and it looks like there are some gaps developing in the timber. In this last photo, it looks like a splint about an inch long has developed on this side of the frame.

If the paint is peeling, then it's time to repaint.
You probably could get away with touching up the areas where the paint is peeling, but it's difficult to get a good color match, and it's probably almost as much work to do touch-ups as it would be do redo the whole thing. If there's a scrape in new paint after only a year or so, that would probably be the time to touch up just the scraped area...
Prep is the key to a good paint job:

Sand and scrape off any loose paint.
Caulk any small gaps.
Repair any large cracks. (Ask a whole new question if you're not sure about how)

Enjoy another 5, 10, 15 years of nice looking paint, then do it again.


How do I plug my three prong dryer plug up when I have a four prong outlet? I have a new outlet (in an older house) with 4 hole socket and an older (4 years old) dryer. The dryer currently has a three pin plug.

What are my options for connecting the dryer to the newer outlet?

I did see New dryer, old outlet and How do I connect a dryer with a four prong plug to a three prong socket?, and I guess my question is just the reversed.

Is there a type of adapter that would work for this?

EDIT: With the accepted answer, I think I figure it out. The before picture:

The after picture with the 4 prong cord:

Does that look right? (The colors of the wires in the cord match the colors of the wires inside the dryer.)

You need a new dryer cord, not an adapter

What you need to do is remove the existing cord from the dryer (dryer cords attach to a terminal block on the dryer, typically accessible by removing a cover from the back panel) and attach a new, four-prong/four-wire dryer cord to the terminal block.  There is also a white wire running to the chassis ground screw on your dryer -- that wire needs to be moved from there to the neutral screw on the terminal block, thus disconnecting the neutral-ground bond on your dryer.