Dryer vent coming up out of the ground We recently moved into a house and hooked up a new (LG) washer and dryer. The dryer was showing us an error message related to decreased performance due to poor venting exhaust. I went outside to see where the exhaust was and encountered this:

The dryer is venting up out of the ground:

After some searching, it looks like this is one of these dryer vent seals. The original owner says there used to be a cap on top, but it came off some years ago. From the few YouTube videos I was able to find though, it looks like these should be used above ground and the vent air down through the bottom of the top piece of the dryer seal vent, which can't happen here because the bottom of the vent is pressed against the ground/mulch.
I talked to the home inspector (this was not mentioned on the inspection report) and he says that this is fairly common with slab houses in my area.
So three questions:

Is this actually ok or common? I've never seen anything like this, but this is my first home purchase.
How bad is this? It seems very bad to me. The most frustrating part is that the dryer is right next to the outside wall, so a straight pipe out to the porch would work fine. I plan on getting that done at some point.
What is the right way to maintain this until I can get (2) accomplished? I considered buying a new dryer vent seal like I showed and replacing the top part, but something feels off here.
Why would you ever do this instead of venting directly out of the exterior wall? The only idea the inspector had was aesthetics.

I should note that our dryer vent coil on the inside is much too long, which could be contributing to the poor venting situation. It might be the case that once that is fixed, there's enough airflow to force the cap up and vent somewhat properly.

If the vent is obstructed or becomes obstructed due to lack of protection, that is a problem that could cause a fire, so it is not OK.  In my area it is not common, but if you look hard enough you can probably find many areas where a certain questionable install is typical.  Doesn't matter at all if it's common or normal if it creates a problem.

If the vent clogs and you don't have a super fancy modern dryer with air flow detection, it could cause a fire, potentially costing everything you own or your life.  On the other hand it looks super easy and cheap to fix and the building hasn't burned down yet, so how do you evaluate bad?

For a temporary protection measure, thoroughly clean out the vent and then protect it so nothing can get in it.  You can't reduce to holes of lower cross sectional area than the pipe, so you could take a large bucket, turn it upside down and cut suitable sized holes low on the bucket.  Put some steel mesh over the vent to keep rodents out, place the bucket over top and put a brick or rock on it to hold it.  If you do buy a replacement cap, you need to dig around the base of the head and ensure both that it remains unobstructed and that rodents can't climb
into it.  Note that a layer of mesh must be larger than the pipe it obstructs proportional to the % area blocked by the mesh.
At a later date either vent it out at a suitable height or add more enduring protection for the head, like a tower to put it out of reach and a suitable replacement head.

You'd have to ask the guy who liked the method enough to repeat it.  Aesthetics, cost or the addition of a "feature" are potential reasons.  Nobody thinks of everything and product decisions are not always made by those with practical knowledge and experience.  A few seasons of landscaping and spring cleanup added dozens of things I would think about when designing a fence or a yard.  Judging from the way 80% of yards are designed, most of the people designing them for large complexes have no experience whatsoever maintaining them commercially.  Note that this could have been originally OK but complicated by landscaping/mulch being added at a later date.

A longer pipe restricts airflow more than a shorter one.  If the flexible section indoors to connect to the dryer is too long, it may also necessitate unnecessary bends which will further restrict air flow.


Can I install a hardwood floor in the kitchen? I don't know if I can install a hardwood floor in my kitchen.
What would you recommend ?

Thank you so much

Camille

Sure. But it's a bad idea, because kitchens are wet and have people walking around in them all the time. A wood floor will scratch and wear quickly, and be exposed to conditions that can encourage warping, rot, or mold.

So ideally you want something durable and not affected by water, and probably something that's attractive, too. That pretty much leaves tile, which, incidentally enough, is why most kitchens are tiled nowadays.


What's wrong with my replacement fan motor? I have one of those integrated bathroom 3-in-1 ceiling units (light, heat and exhaust fan).

Recently the fan spontaneously stopped working. I took the unit down to inspect the fan motor and took it to an electrical service person to see if it could be mended, or if not to hopefully source a replacement. The techie pronounced the motor dead and confirmed my fears that replacement parts are not available from the manufacturer, one typically has to replace the whole 3-in-1 unit.

I despise the disposable mindset of modern consumer appliances so I went looking for another solution. I found A/C fridge evaporator fan motors were widely available and one 'universal' motor from an online retailer that remarkably had the same dimensions for the mounting posts and similar appearance to my busted one (albeit much lighter), so I thought I would try that.

Original dead motor:

My adapted replacement:

The following specs are provided for the new motor:

  240Volts AC, 10Watt, 50/60Hz.
  Shaft length 30mm, shaft diameter 3.17mm,
  total depth 90mm from tip of shaft to back of mounting knob.

Here are the terminals on the 3-in-1 unit (plastic fan shroud with lamp sockets) with the fan removed. The original motor had two writes running into the right-hand-side of the Fan and Neutral terminals.

So I successfully fitted my new motor and connected the two wires to Fan and Neutral, but on hitting the switch, it didn't give so much as a twitch. I tried swapping the two wires (my understanding is for A/C motors this shouldn't make any difference) but it still didn't work.

My questions:

This should've worked, right? An A/C motor is an A/C motor, so a straight swap like this should be okay?
Have I killed my new motor? How does a motor like this (or particularly the original) die?
What kind of tests can I do to confirm whether my motor is in working condition, or was DOA, or to isolate the source of the problem elsewhere? I've done some simple continuity tests of the connecting wires but I don't know what else I can test. (I should have tried wiring it to Light to rule out any issue with the supply-side wiring, but I didn't think of it...)

Thanks in advance.

Edit: The 3-in-1 is an Airflow Sunshine model 6600A, manufactured by Clipsal. Here's a picture. It's seen on page 5 of this brochure. Also on page 25 of this catalogue with technical data, although the unit depicted is slightly different to mine. I've contacted Clipsal and they've said they don't provide parts (and it's a discontinued model).

An electric motor in definitely not not just an electric motor.  They are very proprietary. It takes a lot of skill substitute one motor for anything but the OEM part number. There are tens of thousands of different kinds of motors out there.  Almost none of them will substitute one for another.  For example, with the motor you are working with, the stack of the iron laminations determines the torque the motor can deliver.  The torque required is dictated by the size the design of the fan blade; the larger the blade the more torque required.  I can clearly see that the motor you are trying to substitute will not provide the necessary torque to drive that blade, i.e. the original motor stack is so much thicker.  This is just one of many variable that are in play.  If you can clear the following list of variables you may be able to replace this motor successfully.  #1 support/mounting criterion.  #2 direction of rotation.  #3 Torque.  #4 RPM. #5 Shaft length. #6 shaft diameter.  #7 Shaft configuration. #8 clearances.  #9 Voltage requirements. #10 What environment was the motor designed to operate within.

Answer to question #2:If the motor still runs nicely it probably OK.  These motors die because the bearing dry out. The lubrication last only lasts so long.

Answer to question #3.  If you are getting proper voltage to the motor and the shaft doesn't turn the bearing are probably shot. With the lubrication gone you have metal on metal and it's only a mater of time.


What sort of transformers are needed for LED spotlights (MR16)? I have a suspended ceiling in my bathroom with 6 halogen (MR160 12V 35W) spotlights, each light has its own transformer, which I believe is to covert the voltage from 240v to 12v.

Some of the fitting do not work entirely (I have checked by moving the bulbs to another fitting), and in addition the new LED bulbs (12v 5w) I have bought either do not work or intermittently flash.

My questions are...
Is it normal to have one transformer per bulb?

My assumption is that the LED bulbs flash because the transformer is not the right one, is this correct and which one should I get?

I also assume the other fitting do not light, either due to faulty wiring or more likey the transformer has blown?

Do the transformers have to be dimmable, considering we don't have a dimmer switch.

The label on one of the transformers

View of the ceiling

My questions are... Is it normal to have one transformer per bulb?

Yes, though not always. Track fittings in particular use many bulbs (usually 12V MR16) off a single transformer/driver.

  My assumption is that the LED bulbs flash because the transformer is not the right one, is this correct and which one should I get?

  I also assume the other fitting do not light, either due to faulty wiring or more likey the transformer has blown?

The transformer may have a minimum load, below which it won't switch on or will oscillate between on and off. Have you tried putting the old halogens back in? If they work, the transformer is OK.

  Do the transformers have to be dimmable, considering we don't have a dimmer switch.

Nope.

If you want LED bulbs (and don't mind about dimmability), it may be easiest to replace the MR16 downlights with mains-voltage GU10 ones, and use GU10 bulbs. No transformer/driver required.


Moving Kitchen sink to opposite side of room The 1-1/2” drain from the sink currently runs through the back of the cabinet and down into an interior wall to the basement. The new location will be an outside wall. There is currently no visible drain vent in place. What would be the proper way to vent the line in its new location?

There isn't only one proper way. If it's convenient to do so, extend the vent straight upward. If there is attic and roof immediately above then you could make a new roof penetration for the vent and detail with a pipe jack flashing in the usual way. If there's another story of the building above, you could get into that ceiling/floor space and take the vent anywhere - continue upward, route to meet with the existing vent, etc.

If taking the vent up is problematic, route it downward instead. It could be arranged as for an island sink as explained at Family Handyman (they mention two methods: loop as per the image below, or use an air admittance valve).


my hayward electric spa heater isn't heating as well The 2 elements when taken out, test at 10 ohms each, but when one is inserted in heater and wired, it still tests 10 ohms at screws, but when 2nd in also inserted and wired to thermostat, the ohms reading at screws on both elements only reads 5 ohms.  Does the thermostat need to be replaced?

Because you're measuring the whole circuit!
I'm sure you'd agree the measurement on the left is correct.

So why does the right side read the same?
The wires connect all those points with an extremely low-resistance path.   So even though you are trying to point to only one resistor with the probes... the wires connect it to the other resistor whether you like it or not.
If you connected the left probe to *anywhere along those wires left of the resistors, you'd get the same thing again.
This is the inherent problem with in-circuit testing of components.  The component must be isolated to get a true reading.


Why is my table saw blade burning oak boards as I make rip cuts? Bought a new saw blade, most expensive one I've seen and it still burns the wood and takes some pushing to get through.
I am ripping 1 3/4 thick oak with the grain.
Blade is Orange Chrome Heavy Duty Multi Purpose Carbide 10" x 0.126"
60 TCG

Am I expecting too much? Wrong type of blade? Bad blade?

High tooth count will give smooth results in most cases, but they can heat up in hard wood.  More teeth leads to more friction.  It's probably a fine all purpose blade, but ripping a hardwood like oak, especially very thick boards, is probably a reason to use a dedicated ripping blade.

Ripping blades have 24-30 teeth, and the tooth profile is flat on top.  Some may have a slightly thicker kerf to avoid binding if the board twists or pinches when it's cut.  Each tooth takes a bigger bite, but when you're going with the grain, you can afford to do that.  Fewer teeth means less friction and heat.


Washing machine electricity i have Samsung washing machine from UAE, the cord is without plug, when i moved to the UK I bought the plug and found that it is fitted with a 13 amp fuse

My washing machine has the following label :
 220-240v
2000- 2400w

And i found the instructions in the manual is to plug the power cord into an AC 220 V/ 50 Hz/ 15A wall socket or higher

Will there be a problem connecting the cord to this 13 amp fused plug and then to the wall socket in the UK?

There's no reason for a washing machine to use that much electricity unless it's heating the water.

If it's heating the water, it's using a resistive element.  With those, if voltage changes a certain percentage, power drawn changes by the square of that percentage.  So looking at the specs, it is 2000W at 220V and 2400W at 240V.  The new voltage is 109% of the old, square that and you get 119%.  The new wattage is 120% of the old.  Close enough: it is behaving like a resistive element.

2400 watts at 240V, that is 10 amps, which is obviously under 13 amps by a margin.  You should be fine.


How can I paint concrete blocks without trapping moisture? I have a shed/laundry that is a separate building from my house. It's made of concrete blocks sitting on top of a poured concrete slab. Currently the inside is bare, which is dark and drab. I want to brighten it up. I was thinking of painting it, or maybe tiling (although I don't want to spend much effort). The outside is already painted.

But, the building has a flat roof with narrow eaves, and the outside of the wall gets wet. Sometimes after a lot of rain the inside of the wall looks damp. It's possible that the gutters overflow a little bit inside, but this will be difficult to fix because the roof is shared and controlled by a poorly-funded body corporate.

I'm worried that if I paint the walls the bricks will stay damp for longer, which might smell and eventually cause structural problems. Or maybe it's not an issue because the blocks are hollow? We don't get freezing temperatures here, so I'm more concerned about things like concrete cancer and mould than cracking.

My question is: how can I brighten the inside of the shed without causing long-term maintenance problems?

Seems like a shoddily built roof. So, I think the roof will fail long before painted walls will cause a problem.

It sounds like the outside paint is already 'breathable' if it's absorbing water and capillary action is bring it to the inside. As such, I'd argue that waterproofing the interior is a good thing. Keep the moisture in the wall and allow it to dry to the outside.


1/2" IPS -> Aerator? I have a kitchen faucet that currently has a faulty dual mode (shower/aerator) nozzle. The nozzle has a 1/2" MIP thread.

I would like the replace the nozzle with a standard aerator, but my local hardware store tells me that such a thing doesn't exist (i.e. 1/2" MIP aerator).

Is this so? Any way to adapt a normal aerator to the thread I have?

Thanks!

Th MIP thread is PART of the faucet and not a separate unit you can remove?
https://www.plumbingsupply.com/aerator.html

MIP/FTP/NPT..... They make converters, and also Aerators with 1/2 IP threads.


Can I manually switch off booster fans that are coupled with HVAC blower? Could not get upstairs in 1900 craftsman bungalow cooled with HVAC system until the contractor inserted a booster fan in each of the two ducts. Fans are coupled to the blower of the HVAC. Now in fall and probably throughout winter it gets way too hot upstairs. Is there a safe (and easy) DIY way to disconnect the fans from the blower to just have normal air flow going upstairs or would the fans block the airflow if not powered?

Thanks in advance!

Pictures show how the fans were hooked up to the blower control board.

Tom

You'll need to add an extra fan relay to your system to accomplish this

Your existing setup controls the booster fans via the EAC terminals on the furnace control board, which appear to be energized whenever the furnace blower is running.  In order to change this, you'll need to stick a fan relay in line with the control wiring to the fans, so that the fan only comes on during the correct conditions (cooling, in your case).  For this, you'll need:

A SPST-NO HVAC relay (these have 24VAC coils, quick-connect terminals, and flange mounting means)
Two short lengths of 18/2 thermostat cable (enough to get from the control board to the relay, and another shorter length to serve as a pigtail)
A length of 14AWG stranded THHN wire (about the same length as the thermostat wire, can be any color save for white, grey, or green)
Four female quick-connect terminals (two red ones for 18AWG wire, two blue ones for the 14AWG wire), as well as two wirenuts suitable for 4x18AWG wires
A couple of self-drilling sheet metal screws, suitable for attaching the flanges on the relay to the inside of the furnace wiring compartment
And a screwdriver + wire-cutter/stripper (of course) and a ratchet-type crimper with an insulated terminal die (these are the way to go for crimping things, the cheap crimp pliers are not a good way to get uniformly reliable crimps)

The installation goes as follows (if you aren't comfortable with this, any HVAC tech or electrician should be able to do this on your behalf):

Turn power to the furnace off (the service switch will suffice), and open up the wiring compartment of the furnace
Find an empty spot near the control board to mount the control relay at, and use the mounting screws to attach it to the inside of the wiring compartment there
Crimp the red quick-connects onto the wires on one end after stripping the wires on both ends of the longer length of thermostat cable
Strip both ends of both wires on the shorter length of thermostat cable
Crimp the blue quick-connects onto the ends of the 14AWG wire after stripping them as well
Remove the black wire with the quick-connect terminal on it from the EAC-H terminal on the control board, and move it to one of the contact terminals on the new relay
Use the 14AWG jumper you made in step 5 to connect the other contact terminal on the relay to the EAC-H terminal on the control board
Remove both wires from the Y terminal on the control board, and connect one wire in the short length of thermostat cable to the Y terminal.  Take the matching wire in other end of the short length of thermostat cable, and nut it to the existing Y wires as well as to one wire in the long length of thermostat cable
Repeat the process of step 8 with the wires connected to the C terminal on the control board and the free wires in the two lengths of thermostat cable you added. If there's only one wire connected to C, that's no big deal -- this will set you up properly later if you need to run a C wire to a thermostat down the road.
Connect the quick-connects on the other end of the thermostat cable to the coil terminals on the new relay
Button the wiring compartment back up and turn the service-switch back on

Now, the booster fans should only work if the thermostat is calling for air conditioning.  If you want them to run during a call for fan, you'll need to rewire things so that the fan relay's coil is wired between G and C on the control board, instead of between Y and C as it is at the moment.


Must we install a "moisture, not vapor" barrier, room-side, on an insulated above-grade portion of an exterior basement wall Must we install a "moisture, not vapor" barrier, room-side, on an insulated above-grade portion of an exterior basement wall
Can we forgo installing any " moisture, not vapor, " barrier on the INSIDE of our above grade portion of an exterior basement 6" wall that has been filled with fiberglass insulation (with no kraft paper)?  If not, what do we use, the only "moisture, not vapor" barrier we've heard of is Tyvek; however, when we contacted Tyvek their Tech said "Tyvek is not for interior use"
The house is located in the forests of central western MA near the CT Border ( 01034 ).  The walk out basement dimensions are 24x26.  We have no knowledge about what moisture barrier may have been placed on the outside of the exterior walls in 1986/7 when the house was built.
We are considering closing up the wall using neither any moisture, nor "moisture not vapor", barrier.  Would this be an okay approach, to close up the wall with no barrier other than the paneling (or sheet rock), leaving the fiberglass insulated wall, otherwise, unlined, unenclosed and unrestricted (air born particles) ?
The exterior stud wall rises to approximately six feet above the top of the 27" high concrete foundation wall and has seven windows, including the door's window panel, and 12 electrical outlets.  A few years back the basement had a mold bloom (green) and all the exterior wall sheet rock and the previous fiberglass insulation with Kraft paper, were removed; and the basement was professionally cleaned.  The floor was and still is bare (another problem, perennial dust).  Since then we installed a powerful Sante Fe Classic dehumidifier and new fiberglass insulation (with no kraft paper).  We are now ready to close up and finish up with, the room side of the exterior stud wall.  We are considering installing pine T&G paneling on the stud section of the wall and we really need to decide what if anything to put between the insulation filled studs and the finish wall product, ie the paneling.
More on the matter . . . we also installed a mini-split and most recently a PH neutralizer tank was installed.  This tank is uninsulated and sweats like crazy (but not onto the floor?) even with the dehumidifier running.  Nothing else, that we can visually see, is sweating; however, this new tank's sweating is reminiscent of the sweat we used to see on the lally columns prior to the installation of the dehumidifier.  This reminds us that the condensation threat is ever present at least in Summer.  We are considering installing an insulation blanket on the tank.
Lastly, we have, on more than one occasion, been told by professionals that the basement is "dry"
however, the concrete moisture level on the floor and the walls at the corners etc registers as high as even 90%, after a rain.
Okay, we've posted a lot of comments and questions.  If you only get to answer one, please respond to the question of how to address the closing of the upper six feet of the inside of the exterior wall.
Please advise, as we would greatly appreciate any consideration you may give this matter.

To me, “moisture barrier” is located on the exterior of a wall and “vapor barrier” is located on the interior.
If you are not sure there is a moisture barrier, you’d better check because without it you’ll have dryrot, mold and structural decay from rain leaking into the wall.
Vapor barrier keeps VAPOR from moving through the wall from the warm side to the cool side. Generally in the U.S. (including where you live) that means from the inside to the outside. (However, that can change at different times during the year.)
Vapor is a problem when it turns from vapor to moisture (water).  This occurs at the “Dew Point”.  I’ll let you Google dew point to learn about that, but basically it’s when the vapor moves from the warm moist side to the cooler side and turns into water. Walls are not vented like attics are vented. So, it’s important to keep vapor out of the walls.
Obviously if you have a lot of vapor on the interior of your house (basement rooms), then you’ll have more of a problem. If your basement is “dry”, you may not need a vapor barrier.
Recently we’ve learned a lot about the movement of vapor in walls. We use to just think in terms of winter. Now we know that if you live where it’s warm and moist on the exterior and you cool the interior, then the vapor moves in the opposite direction and you do not want a vapor barrier because it will “trap” any moisture in the wall causing mold...probably not dryrot because there isn’t enough moisture to do that kind of damage.
In northern environments, they use a plastic sheeting because the temperature never changes enough to have the vapor change directions. Likewise, in the south, they never use vapor barriers because the exterior is almost always warmer than the interior (due to air conditioning).
I live in a similar environment as you, but on the west coast. I never use a vapor barrier because 1) I don’t have that big of a vapor problem, and 2) I want the moisture to escape when the season changes.
However, you are different. When I paint my interior walls, that provides a substantial vapor barrier. You are going to install boards on the walls, so vapor will easily enter your walls AND you don’t have a vapor barrier on your insulation. Because of that, I’d use a vapor barrier. (No matter how good you install the vapor barrier, (even taping the joints and edges) vapor will still get in the wall through outlets, switches, etc. )
Your new mini-split system is good, because it will “move air” and help dry the room. The dehumidifier is essential and you should keep it running year-round.
NOTE: SHAME ON SE FOR CLOSING THIS QUESTION ...THE QUESTION DOES NOT NEED MORE FOCUS


Replacing a Challenger breaker with an after-market breaker I have a Challenger panel board and one of my breakers is no good. When I went to buy a new one they don't carry them anymore. They said they only carry the after-market ones. So I got that one, but it looks different than the original one. Will it fit in even though it's a different looking one?

You can use BRs instead of Cs
If your panel labeling says it takes type C breakers, then there's an easy way out of it: type BR breakers (as depicted below, with the type C labeling highlighted) are legal, safe, and widely-available (at any big-box or hardware store) replacements for type C breakers, as they are cross-listed (as per this letter from UL to Cutler-Hammer, as reproduced at the bottom of this post) and cross-labeled to replace type C breakers.  (A more modern version of this letter is available, linked from an Eaton FAQ.)

For more exotic Challenger breaker types, Eaton cross-reference document TD01201041E provides the gory details.

(PDF version)


Can I use machine screws in wood to hang shelves? My wife wanted to have these DIY shelves hung.

In our haste to match everything, we purchased these screws to secure them to the wall, along with the requisite toggle bolts.

I went to install them and discovered our selected hanging location has studs along the right side of the shelves.

Can I use the machine screws in the wood stud? Would drilling pilot holes sufficient to start them into the stud?

No. Wood needs wood screws.

These have a sharp point for piercing wood and a deeper thread than machine screws (often called bolts). The shallower thread on bolts is fine for metal, but not for wood.

For ease in setting a deep screw, you should also pre-drill the holes with a bit slightly thinner than the shaft of the screw. And for shelf brackets, I would use long screws, at least 2+ inches beyond the bracket and the drywall.

Take comfort in the fact that screws in studs are much stronger than bolts and toggles in drywall.

(All of the above assumes that there are not contrary instructions that came with the shelf mounting brackets.)

 Images and links are illustrative only, not an endorsement of goods or sources.


Move grounds to subpanel when I moved 8 single pole breakers to same subpanel? When I move 8 breakers from main panel to a subpanel (a few feet away) can I simply move the hot and neutral only to subpanel? The 8 breakers are grounded in the main panel already.

A 100 amp breaker feeds the subpanel (240V) using aluminum SE 2-2-2-4. I got subpanel neutral bus connected to main neutral bus. I got subpanel ground bus connected to main ground bus.

The subpanel has ground and neutral disconnected. Any NEC code reference would be welcome.

The right side of main panel (16 red wire twist caps) extend the 12 AWG wire to middle panel.

Picture of setup:

The grounding should be fine...

What you're doing here is running multiple circuits (the feeder out to the subpanel and the branch circuits back) through a single raceway with a single equipment grounding conductor, as implicitly provided for in NEC 250.122(C):

  (C) Multiple Circuits. Where a single equipment grounding conductor is run with multiple circuits in the same
  raceway, cable, or cable tray, it shall be sized for the largest
  overcurrent device protecting conductors in the raceway,
  cable, or cable tray. Equipment grounding conductors installed in cable trays shall meet the minimum requirements
  of 392.10(B)(1)(c).

This, plus the fact that a single EGC can branch into multiple EGCs downstream of a panel when a multi-circuit raceway splits into individual circuits, means that you are fine on the grounding standpoint.

However, that poor, sweltering feeder cable isn't!

That feeder cable, on the other hand, is very not-fine.  Putting 18 current-carrying wires (8 branch circuit hots and neutrals each, as well as the 2 feeder hots) into a single raceway forces a whopping 50% derate on the conductors (as per Table 310.15(B)(3)(a)), and 30" is a bit too long for the short-raceway provisions in 310.15(B)(3)(a) point 2, which are limited to raceways 24" or shorter.  This means that your 2/2/2/4 SE cable is limited to 50A(!) and your 12AWG branch circuit wires can only handle 15A.

Fixing this would require re-running the middle panel's feeder and returning branch circuits using properly sized wires -- the branch-circuit wires would need to be bumped up to 10AWG, and the feeder hot wires would need to be bumped up to 1/0AWG (although a smaller neutral could be acceptable here, depending on the amount of unbalanced load anticipated in the subpanel).  With your 1.5" EMT, the 10AWG THHN branch circuit wires (at 13.61mm2 of fill each), and compact stranded XHHW-2 singles for the feeder hot conductors, this leaves you with 422.96mm2 of fill used out of 526mm2 usable, before accounting for the neutral -- a full-size 1/0AWG neutral takes up another 102.6mm2 of fill, pushing you to the very limit of what that conduit can handle.

As a result, I'd recommend replacing it with 2" EMT to provide room for growth, or running two more EMTs (1/2" will do, with 72mm2 used vs 78mm2 usable) to allow the use of 12AWG wire for the branch circuits coming back via the new conduits.  (Adding the extra conduits doesn't change the grounding logic from above at all, by the way.)


Are generator interlock kits permitted in residential applications? There have been some questions on the site lately, that reference using interlock kits with portable generators.

This has inspired me to read through article 702 Optional Standby Systems of the NEC (which is short so it wasn't much effort), where I found the following items that seem relevant.

NEC 2008
702.5 Capacity and Rating.
(B) System Capacity.
(1) Manual Transfer Equipment.  Where manual transfer equipment is used, an optional standby system shall have adequate capacity and
rating for the supply of all equipment intended to be operated at one
time. The user of the optional standby system shall be permitted to
select the load connected to the system.

So in the case of an interlock, would the generator have to be rated to supply the whole house, or only the items the user wants to run (which could change at any time)?

702.6 Transfer Equipment. Transfer equipment shall be suitable for the intended use and designed and installed so as to prevent the
inadvertent interconnection of normal and alternate sources of supply
in any operation of the transfer equipment.

A properly installed interlock seems to meet this requirement, so there's nothing here to prevent one. However, there is an exception to this section which may disallow the use of interlocks in residential systems.

Exception: Temporary connection of a portable generator without transfer equipment shall be permitted where conditions of maintenance
and supervision ensure that only qualified persons service the
installation and where the normal supply is physically isolated by a
lockable disconnecting means or by disconnection of the normal supply
conductors.

In my mind, this sentence "where conditions of maintenance and supervision ensure that only qualified persons service the installation". Would mean an interlock cannot be installed in a residential panel, because there is no way to prevent the homeowner from servicing the installation.
Are interlocks a cheap and easy solution for homeowners, or can they not be used in residential situations?
Update
I found this interesting response in this thread, on the Electrical Contractor Network Forum. Which appears to be from a representative from a company who makes these types of devices.

Which basically says the device is NEC compliant because it's the user that is the transfer equipment, not the device.
I also found this semi-related, not relevant to the question at hand, section in the NEC.

408.36 Overcurrent Protection.
(D) Back-Fed Devices. Plug-in-type overcurrent protection devices or plug-in type main lug assemblies that are backfed and used to
terminate field-installed ungrounded supply conductors shall be
secured in place by an additional fastener that requires other than a
pull to release the device from the mounting means on the panel.

Which means if you're backfeeding through a breaker, you'll need to strap the breaker in place somehow.

It seems the decision is ultimately in the hands of the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ), as long as "equivalent objectives can be achieved" using the device.

  National Electrical Code 2008

  ARTICLE 100 Definitions

  Approved. Acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction.

  Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ). An organization, office, or individual responsible for enforcing the requirements of a code or
  standard, or for approving equipment, materials, an installation, or a
  procedure.

  ARTICLE 110 Requirements for Electrical Installations

  110.2 Approval. The conductors and equipment required or permitted by this Code shall be acceptable only if approved.

  ARTICLE 90 Introduction

  90.4 Enforcement. This Code is intended to be suitable for mandatory application by governmental bodies that exercise legal
  jurisdiction over electrical installations, including signaling and
  communications systems, and for use by insurance inspectors. The
  authority having jurisdiction for enforcement of the Code has the
  responsibility for making interpretations of the rules, for deciding
  on the approval of equipment and materials, and for granting the
  special permission contemplated in a number of the rules.

  By special permission, the authority having jurisdiction may waive
  specific requirements in this Code or permit alternative methods where
  it is assured that equivalent objectives can be achieved by
  establishing and maintaining effective safety.

  This Code may require new products, constructions, or materials that
  may not yet be available at the time the Code is adopted. In such
  event, the authority having jurisdiction may permit the use of the
  products, constructions, or materials that comply with the most recent
  previous edition of this Code adopted by the jurisdiction.

WARNING

While these devices may or may not be approved by the AHJ, they are not the best solution available.  They do not prevent the user from overloading the generator, since the load selection is made by the user dynamically during operation. The better, safer solution, is to install manual or automatic transfer switches. This allows you to pre-select the loads making it a more user friendly solution.


Recessed Lighting Junction Box Cord A little while ago I bought some of the below recessed lights for the basement. Had an issue where one wasn't working so I punched a hole into the ceiling and pulled the junction box down, re-nutted the hot, and neutral wires just in case to no avail. Long story short in my attempt to Get the junction box, I was pulling on the power wire a bit but evidently a bit too hard. Pulled the white sheath out of the box. Tried opening the junction box, couldn't figure it out, so I put it back together, shoved the white sheath back in, and wrapped electrical tape around the opening then put it back in the ceiling. Magically, the light worked.

Now because of that sheath coming loose and me electrical taping it, I just wanted to make sure there wouldn't be an issue with it down the road that I should be seriously concerned about.

Should I buy a new light for the junction box, or am I good?

The lights: Sunco Lighting 4 Inch Slim LED... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MLYD75M?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

You are likely to have issues and I would strongly recommend replacing at least the LED driver box ("junction box"), if not the entire light.

The white cable that connects to the driver box contains at least two low-voltage wires, and is secured to the grounded metal driver box by a plastic collar. Contact between the metal box and the internal wires likely caused your issue, pulling on the cable probably caused further exposure of the internal wires, and if your wire nuts aren't well-secured inside the box due to some of this punching and pulling, you could have a real mess on your hands from low voltage + high voltage + ground contact.

Rather than punching holes in the ceiling, try to pull the light downward out of the hole and the driver box should follow.


Can I use construction adhesive for backsplash tiles I have s plaster wall with these plastic backspashes from the 70s that are adhered to the wall in such a way that I can’t easily pry them off without pulling the plaster off or really making a mess of things ... I’m contemplating putting up subway tile, and I’m wondering if I can just use construction adhesive and stick the tiles right on the existing plastic pieces ... I would then grout of course any ideas ?

I personally wouldn't cover up the existing tiles as the new ones will look twice as thick at the edges, and you'll have to match the old tiles exactly. It shouldn't be that hard to remove the old tiles. I would try using a metal putty knife and hammer. The putty knife should get right behind the tile and not do any real damage to the drywall behind. Then just do any surface repair with drywall compound. Then I would use a mastic or thinset depending on what type of tile you choose. I wouldn't use construction adhesive just because it literally will lock those tiles in place.


Is it NEC-compliant to place a GFCI or AFCI receptacle or deadfront device in a location not readily reachable? NEC 240.24 requires overcurrent devices (fuses/breakers, incl. AFCI/GFCI/DFCI breakers) to be placed so that their operating means is no more than 6'7" off the ground under most circumstances, and also imposes a few other requirements on their placement (not near easily ignitable materials, not in a dwelling unit bathroom, not over a staircase).  However, it seems there is nothing in the NEC that governs the placement of receptacle-type or deadfront circuit interrupter devices, or whether their operating means must be accessible whatsoever -- apparently, even boneheadedness like wanting to put a GFCI in one's ceiling is Code-compliant.

Am I correct that there are no placement requirements for deadfront or receptacle type circuit interrupter devices? (i.e. GFCI receptacles can be placed over stairs, in a ceiling, 20' up on the wall, in a clothes closet, or in a dwelling unit bathroom, the last one being quite common practice in residential wiring.)  Or am I missing some part of the Code that prohibits such boneheadedness as a GFCI receptacle that's too high up for anyone to reach, or a deadfront AFCI in the back of one's clothes closet?

If this is allowed by code, what risk would an interrupter device in a bathroom or closet or over a staircase pose, compared to that posed by a singular overcurrent device in that location?

Check 210.8 Ground-Fault Circuit-Interrupter Protection for Personnel.

  ...The ground-fault circuit-interrupter shall be installed in a readily accessible location.

And 210.12 Arc-Fault Circuit-Interrupter Protection.

  ...The arc-fault circuit-interrupter shall be installed in a readily accessible location.

Then Article 100, for the definition of readily accessible.

  Accessible, Readily  (Readily Accessible). Capable of being reached quickly for operation, renewal, or inspections without requiring those to whom ready access is requisite to climb over or remove obstacles or to resort to portable ladders, and so forth.


Making valve "easy" to remove I'm currently installing a double check backflow preventer and code says that it needs to be able to be "spun/turned out" for maintenance if required - this is the valve in question.

Now the pipe that is going into either end of the valve is 1/2" pex and I'm using this 1/2" Brass PEX Barb x Male Pipe Thread Adapter to make the join.

Given that the pipes wont spin, I'm wondering how I make it easy to "spun/turned out" without cutting the pex?

If I spin the value it will alway get tighter at one end... is the idea that I only half screw it in at end to allow it to spin up that thread whilst coming off the other end or should i be using female adapter on the end of the pex and a male/male adapter which can be spun? Or do I just remove the pex clamp at one end hence disconnecting it from the pipe?

I've seen PVC unions which would make this easy but I haven't seen the equivalent for pex.

If you don't want to convert over a copper union to Pex (which would probably require a little pipe sweating), the Pex unions available are pretty cheesy pieces of junk.

Luckily for you, Pex will twist on it's own fitting. I wouldn't suggest doing it very often, but the once or twice you may have to remove that fitting from the check valve for "inspection", you'll be fine.


When sanding hardwood floors, should I buy a rotary or oscillating tool? I plan to refinish the hardwood floors in three bedrooms using an orbital floor sander because they seem easier and safer for beginners than the drum sander. I need something to sand the edges, and I've wanted to buy a rotary/oscillating tool for a while. Which would help me more with this job? Or should I buy an actual hand sander instead?

Unless you love spending time on your knees, rent the drum sander and the rotary edge sander.   If you are worried about losing control of the drum sander, start with fine grit while you are getting the hang of it.  Or ask the rental place to leave the old paper on it.  It is likely to be toothless enough that it will be very hard to do any damage.

Orbital sanders are very slow, and generally are used for furniture making.

Sanding produces enormous quantities of dust.  This is one reason you want to get done quickly.  Even if you put plastic over the doors and heating vents, dust gets everywhere.

It's a good idea to have someone working with a vacuum as you sand.  Get it off the floor ASAP so the next pass with the sander doesn't cast it into the air again.  You will probably want to wear dust masks.

I have three sanders right now.  A 7" disk sander that I can also put cuttoff wheels and wire brushes on, a 3x21 belt sander, and a 4x5 orbital sander.  All 3 get used regularly, but for a floor project it would be the belt sander that would be used the ost.


Upgrading residential wiring I'm planning on rewiring the entire house, and since I'm not a fan of the electrical wires being behind the walls I was thinking about upgrading to conduit  on the interior walls in a fashionable way, then coating it with paint to make it look better.
The only problem I'm having is deciding which type of conduit to get because aluminum/galvanized is conductive, so  if there's a short circuit (thinking long term failures) it would shock anyone who touches the receptacle box and PVC conduit can melt if anything gets too hot and it more susceptible to damage
What would you choose to do and why ?

Actually, metal conduit is better and potentially safer for a few reasons:

Grounding

Everything needs a grounding path. If you use non-metallic cable (aka Romex) or wires in a non-metallic conduit then you have to include a ground wire (green or bare). If you use metal conduit and metal boxes then the conduit does double-duty as the ground. This actually has an additional benefit because a loose hot wire inside metal conduit or a metal box is likely to short to the conduit or the box and trip a breaker. A loose hot wire inside PVC conduit or a plastic box can cause all kinds of problems.

Fire Safety

There are two main hazards with electricity - fire and shock (which can go as far as electrocution). Metal conduit and boxes are inherently safer when it comes to sparks and fire than plastic. Metal can burn, but only at a much higher temperature than plastic such as PVC.

Life Safety

If everything is installed properly, the exposed conduit will all be electrically grounded, so it is really quite safe. Most incidents that would result in a circuit that includes the conduit would trip a breaker pretty quickly. But there are exceptions, which is where GFCI protection comes into play. GFCI is typically required in kitchens, bathrooms, garages, outdoors and any wet areas. It can be added everywhere if you are really paranoid, though keep in mind that an unnoticed nuisance GFCI trip on a refrigerator could result in spoiled food, and an unnoticed nuisance GFCI trip is far more common than an unnoticed over-current (regular breaker) trip.
I'm not sure why you are not a fan of wires inside walls. Done properly, they are quite safe. AFCI protection is now required on many circuits (gradually increasing to "almost everything") which takes care of a lot of the possible "hidden damage to wires inside walls" issues.


How do I determine how efficient my furnace, A/C, and windows are? I just bought an older home.

The furnace, A/C, and windows are functional, but I suspect there may be some efficiency gains to be made.

Is there any way to determine/estimate how efficient those are currently? I would like to see if it makes sense to spend the money to upgrade them based on ROI on my utility bills.

As mac has mentioned, an energy audit is a logical starting point.  I would shop for a "blower door" test that measures actual system air leakage.  The other test would be a thermal IR scan, that will reveal relative hot/cold spots.  Some utilities offer discounted audits.


How can I replace a non-standard (20cm) bathroom faucet? The bathroom sink has a separate cold and hot tap, their centres are 20cm apart. I want to replace them with a mixer tap. However, the mixer taps I see have 18cm distance.
What are the options for building in a mixer tap without getting a new sink?

EDIT:
I can't include pictures as I have only recently joined this forum. Some further details:

the current 20cm centered faucets have their own water spouts
the sink has two holes, but
when looking from below, in the middle a circle can be seen where the sink is thinner (I guess this can be opened to get e third central hole)
a common water spout in the middle is the goal, either with one or two handles
there is a flat surface between the current two faucets
there is a tiled flat wall behind the sink, so theoretically the new faucet could be built into the wall, but I would prefer not to remove tiles.

I see that it is hard to recommend a robust solution for you because of several missing pieces of data. Here is a summary of questions that really need to be answered -

Are your current 200mm centered faucets each with their own water spout?
Does your sink have two holes or three?
When you say "mixer valve" are you referring to a single handle
faucet or one with two handles but with a common water spout?
Is the space where the faucets are located and in between them a
nice flat surface on the back of the sink?

If you have a two hole setup then you may be faced with either replacing the sink or boring a third center hole in the sink. A faucet like that pictured below is a center hole mounted unit that requires a 1 3/8" to 1 1/2" hole. It comes with an optional deck plate that can be used to cover a previous 2 or 3 hole installation. (You would have to check though if the deck plate with this one would cover over the your existing 200mm spaced holes).

On-Line retailer link:

http://www.faucet.com/danze-d225525rb-ac0fw1-oil-rubbed-bronze-single-handle-centerset-bathroom-faucet-from-the-aerial-collection/f1072590


Can I add an HVAC supply vent directly to the trunk? I have a bathroom I'm remodeling, and the current heat vent is attached to a meandering ~10' run of round duct which originates from the trunk of the furnace (located next to this bathroom in the laundry room). The vent needs to be removed because of a change I'm making to cabinets. Can I attach the new vent directly to the supply trunk (which runs right above this room), or is it important that I provide a run of round duct for some reason?

The bathroom is small (6'x11'?), and with the furnace nearby, I imagine putting a supply vent directly onto the supply trunk could result in a lot of hot air coming in due to pressure. Can I solve that by using a small vent?

That should be fine (I've seen it done many times in basements), with a few caveats:

You're right that there will be more flow with that setup than with a length of round duct. Add to that the smaller room you're feeding, and you can see that you'll need to dampen with an adjustable vent.
By doing so you may introduce noise. You have a shorter sound path from the furnace itself, and adding a damper vent will likely cause white noise at that location as well.


How can I open a desk drawer that is jammed closed by the stuff inside? I have a desk drawer that I need to get into but it only opens and inch. I had a lot of stuff packed inside, I'm not sure if something is jammed.

Open it so it jams then back it off a bit, so whatever is causing the jam is not stuck. Then using a ruler, piece of cardboard, or other flat object, work it into the gap so it rests above the drawer contents and presses down on them (or just guides them) to free them from the drawer or frame above.


How much weight can screws in drywall hold? I've always had the question of how much weight can a single screw into a drywall withstand?

For instance, I would like to do things like this:

It's hung with 5 screws. The whole thing weighs approximately 50kg (110 pounds) so we can say that each screw holds approximately 10kg (22 pounds).

The person who installed it said it was fine, but is it really?

Do somebody know a study or some numbers regarding how much weight this material can stand?

EDIT: Just to clarify, it's not screwed to the studs. It's screwed to the drywall.

It's always better to attach it to studs - which should certainly be possible with something that big.  That said though, you might be surprised how much a drywall anchor can hold.

How well they work depends on the load though.  They will work best with a static downward load - a fixed weight close to the wall pulling directly downward.

They will work much worse with loads that pull down and outward (like a shelf) or dynamic loads where the weight changes regularly causing the fastener to loosen up.  Something like a toilet paper holder represents the worst of both worlds - it sticks out from the wall with the weight at the end, and you produce a dynamic load on it whenever you pull on the TP roll.


Where should I place a stove master switch on an island? We're having our kitchen redone and I would like to integrate our free-standing stove into the island unit.

Where would be decent place to put the stove master switch within this island as there are no walls available directly nearby?

You'll want to place the switch in a convenient accessible location, where it will be out of the way but still usable.  Without some type of plans/drawings/pictures of the island, the answer will have to be fairly generic.

Do Not:

Do Not place the switch where liquid is likely to be spilled on it.
Do Not place the switch where children can easily access it.
Do Not place the switch where it could be mistakenly toggled.
Do Not place the switch inside a cabinet or drawer.
Do Not place the switch where you will have to lean over (a presumably) hot stove.
Do Not place the switch where it could easily be confused with a light switch.

Do

Do place the switch where it can easily be reached.
Do place the switch near the stove (within arms reach preferably).
Do place the switch in an obvious easily visible location.
Do use a protective cover plate to protect against accidental toggle (by yourself/children/pets) Not a locking cover, you want to be able to access it in case of emergency.


Can I terminate a ground wire to the neutral bus if the ground bus is full? I  have a Crouse-Hinds main load center.  The ground bus is at the top left of panel and the neutral bus is at the bottom right of the panel.  I want to add a 15 amp circuit for two outlets in my garage.  The ground bus bar terminals are full.  My question is can terminate my neutral and ground wire both to the neutral bus bar as long as they each are different terminals on the neutral bus bar.  This load center is main panel and not a subpanel.

Mixing Grounded and Grounding
If this panel serves as the main disconnect, and the grounding and neutral bus bars are bonded. Then yes, you can terminate both grounded (neutral) and grounding conductors at the same bus bar.

Notice that the bus bars are bonded using a bonding strap.
Multiple Conductor Terminals
If the bus bar is able to accept multiple conductors under some or all of the terminal screws, it should be labeled as such either on the bar itself or in the panel documentation.  Terminating multiple conductors under a screw that is not rated for it, can cause bad connections, excess heating, damage to the conductors, etc.
Additional Bus Bars
Some panels are configured to allow additional bus bars to be installed. If your panel is one of them, you could install an additional bus bar and terminate extra conductors there.  Other panels may accommodate extended (longer/larger) bus bars, that can be installed in place of the existing bus bars.


Which side of double sink do I connect garbage disposal? NEWBIE I have a double sink in kitchen same size. Looking to install garbage disposal for my first time. Do I install it on the right (white pipe) or left side (black pipe)?
I assume the right side (white piping) since my dishwasher is connected to it and drainage is on the left side.
Is this correct?
Thank you
[1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/AsYJ9.jpg![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/eeEVs.jpg)

You will probably find the right side easier to plumb as there is just more space.  Disposals have sort of a weird offset discharge pipe that isn't just a drop in replacement for the existing extension pipe.  As you noted the dishwasher piping already runs to the right as well, and that is generally connected to the disposal.


Ply gem replacing sash window glass I am trying to replace glass in Ply gem sash window. I took old glass and measured it: 708 x 793 x 18 mm. The new one I bought from provider of construction company that built my house has the following dimensions: 705 x 797 x 21 mm.

I am curious if such difference in dimensions is acceptable and if it makes sense to force it in?

Here are some sash photos

Successfully disassembling sash windows, replacing the glass, and reassembling can be complicated and difficult. If the replacement glass pane is oversized at all, you will not be able to screw the sash frame back together and will likely crack the glass trying. If slightly undersized, it might work. If it is at all thicker, it likely will not fit in the rubber surround that the window is equipped with.

Assuming you measured the original glass properly, I would return the replacement pane you bought and insist on the proper (original) size.


My dishwasher water line is frozen. Can I manually put in hot water in the dishwasher to run it? My dishwasher freezes up during these bitter cold (-25 degree nights, -5 degree highs in the day) spells.  I have a heater in the empty space beside it where a cupboard goes but there is none.  But even after 3 days it still won't allow the water in.  Can I manually put water (if so, how many gallons???) in it & press start?  I do not want to destroy my dishwasher.

I put in only clean dishes, I use it for sanitizing them essentially (my drain is fine, I did check it to see if it needed cleaning just as a precaution).  I cannot pull out the dishwasher nor have a professional come in.  I need a cheap easy fix until the weather warms up. (Besides take them all out & wash by hand-which is what I plan to do the rest of winter. Electric heater costs too much.)  It has done this each Winter during extreme cold spells since I moved here to Wyoming so I'm certain it is a frozen water line, not the dishwasher itself.

I am the original person who wrote this.  My dishwasher is in the corner of the kitchen.  Someone once remodeled the kitchen & took out the door that use to be there.  Unfortunately they didn't insulate the wall they replaced it with.  As a result that corner of this house gets really cold.  I have tried using a small heater in the enclosed space next to the dishwasher but that didn't resolve the problem.  I've also used a hairdryer under it; still no luck. It doesn't leak anywhere which always amazes me. For 8 years now the dishwasher doesn't work once it gets bitter cold here in Wyoming, but works fine starting in late Spring.

So I wanted to know if I could just put in hot water when the proper cycle arose?  My dishwasher is now 10 years olds so I decided, "What the heck? Worse outcome: buy a new dishwasher".  No one had an answer so I decided this year to just do it.  I put in 1 1/2 gallons for the pre-wash, wash & rinse cycles.  This required being in the kitchen the entire time so I didn't miss a cycle.  WORKED FINE in my Kenmore dishwasher.  Hope others have the same luck.

I don't use my dishwasher but once every 3 weeks or so (I hand wash a lot) & I was recently told I should use it every week.  Something about them sitting isn't good.  So I'll try that also & see if that prevents it from 'freezing up' (I'm still keeping the little heater next to it on too.)


Are there any NEC restrictions for wiring 220v and 110v sockets on the same dual pole breaker? I am working on an electrical upgrade for my garage. Some equipment I have requires 20A 220V power. Other equipment only needs 15A or 20A 110V. I would like to run in from a single circuit protected by a dual pole 20A breaker.

Are there any NEC restrictions to wiring 220V and 110V outlets to the same circuit.

Here is my wiring diagram:

Use a two-pole, common-trip breaker and you're set

Since you're dealing with a 20A circuit (where 15 and 20A receptacles are allowed), you can set up this mix of receptacles provided you handle it as for any other combination 120/240V load: all four wires need to be there, as shown in your drawing, and the breaker that protects it needs to be a two-pole, common trip unit (no handle ties here!).  This is written into the Code, albeit somewhat awkwardly, as 210.4(C) exception 2:

  (C) Line-to-Neutral Loads. Multiwire branch circuits
  shall supply only line-to-neutral loads.

  Exception No.1: A multiwire branch circuit that supplies
  only one utilization equipment.

  Exception No.2: Where all ungrounded conductors of the
  multiwire branch circuit are opened simultaneously by the
  branch-circuit overcurrent device.


Getting melted Tupperware and Play-Doh out of an oven A child has managed to melt a Tupperware container full of Play-Doh to the bottom of an oven. How might I clean such a mess and get the oven back into operation?

Though desirable, replacing the oven is not an option.

Most household plastic will become more brittle the colder it is; Tupperware is likely the same.

You could try putting ice cubes on one of the thinner parts and see if it becomes brittle enough to snap.  If it does, you could try freezing the whole pile with dry ice.  Other freezing techniques include squirting a can of compressed-air dusting spray held upside down.  See for example dusting spray.  Or if you need more volume, a CO2 fire extinguisher.  Spending $30 on an extinguisher is still cheaper than a new oven.

Wear thick leather gloves when trying any of the freezing techniques.


Using 30amp rv outlet to power small shop I have a 30amp outlet on my house to supply power to an RV but I plan on putting a portable building near this area and would like to use that power to power my shop which will include 12 3D Printers which are not high wattage but constant draw similar to running 24 100w light bulbs. And also power a small heater or ac unit and a few small power tools occasionally like drills sanders and Dremals.  What is the best way I can tackle this using the 30amp power source?

Assuming that the RV power outlet is 240V, then when you build or buy your building, put in a small load center with a 30A Main Breaker with separate circuits for the building outlets. That way you can't overload the RV outlet and it gives you the required individual circuit protection for your building. I have that exact same setup for a small office building on my property.


Using wool curtain in gardenhouse We got a very nice and large piece of wool, and it would be perfect to use as a separation curtain in our small gardenhouse.

Somebody (not an expert, and not from experience) told us that somehow wool is not adapted for a garden house, it would absorb ambient water and get moldy.

I could also not find online clear explanation of the properties of wool as a curtain, and the related precaution for usage.

Our garden house is dry (no water leak inside) we are using it to sleep in summer, we are hoping to use the wool curtain to be able to also sleep warm in autumn/spring without blowing up the electricity bill. It has a small kitchen and a shower, aeration is also very good. In winter it freeze at temperature -5 C to -15 C (East of Germany)

Is it ok to use wool curtain is a garden house, what would then be the recommendations/ instructions you would give for the usage?

I am no expert either but I would think wool will be less prone to mold and mildew than other fibers.  It wicks away moisture more than most fibers.  I have many times had cotton goods get damp in storage and get musty / mildewed, but never wool blankets or coats.

(Although moths do seem to prefer the wool.  You might have to treat it with something to keep the moths away.)

It doesn't sound to me like your garden house is a particularly dark damp environment, so I doubt it would be a problem.


How should I vent bathroom exhaust fans in an old brick house with slate roof? I recently moved into an old brick house (slate roof), containing several bathrooms without vents.  It's a problem that I've been wanting to correct, though I've put it off because I'm not sure if knocking a hole in either the brick wall or slate roof is worth the hassle (esp. with respect to what I want from the system).

Since the fan's purpose is to move air out to remove humidity and odors, are there any fans out there that push the air through some type of replaceable desiccant to remove moisture, and charcoal to de-odor, so the air could be released back into the attic instead of the outdoors?  To me, this seems like a reasonable option, considering I wouldn't have to worry about making holes in my bricks/roof (not to mention it eliminates the possibility of cold outdoor air flowing back in, which I hear is a problem even with dampered vents).  Has anyone seen or used any such exhaust fans (do they exist)?

With respect to outdoor venting, the only option I can see, since it's a walk-up attic with small windows on the gable ends, might be to cut a circular opening in the glass that just fit the vent pipe (with damper from the other questions I've read) and finding a way to seal it properly might be an option (which means never opening the window).  Is this an acceptable way to go about this?

Any suggestions and best practices for this old house would be appreciated!

Cutting a hole through brick is no big deal.  You could use one of these as a disposable hole saw for $20:

Or one of these as the "right" tool, which will be reusable for $75:

Most hole saws require a 1/2 inch drill plus a ~$10 arbor, both of which will be very useful for other projects in the future, like installing door knob sets in new doors, installing plumbing, ductwork, plenums, and all kinds of projects in plywood, sheet metal, lumber, plastics, etc.

When making the hole, take care to slant it slightly downward (2%—1/4 inch per foot—is typical) toward the outside to prevent rain, etc. from finding a path indoors.  Install a vent device with a damper to prevent hot/cold air from coming inside when the fan is not on, and seal the hole at the outside surface thoroughly with silicon caulk.

Slate can be cut by this type of blade too, but holes through the roof are often fussier to make leak free.


Female Disconnect to Fix Mower Ignition Connection I have an older Craftsman Riding mower that I have to wiggle the wire connector to get it to start.  The ignition switch is working properly (I checked it with a multimeter) so I think the issue has to be in the wiring connector.  Is there any reason why I can't remove the wiring connector and replace the connections using female disconnects?  A new wiring harness is $70 and I am looking for an alternative.

Yes, they went out of their way to use a standard type part so you could do that.

Those connectors do have 3 different widths, so watch out what you are buying.


Door, space separator options with limited frame space? I want to separate a big room into a working room and open kitchen space.

The problem in separating the space is to find proper door -- the problem is that it is very hard to get a door frame to a frame of window and balcony door:

The window-door frame is about 7-9cm and limited by the valve of water-based heater.
Consider also this option where finding door mechanisms would be even more important:

where you may want to use consistent style and mechanisms in both doors, not two separate door designs like the picture.
What are options to separate a space with limited frame space?

I'm still not 100% clear, however, I can think of 3 options:

Make both doors pocket doors.

These slide into the wall and are, therefore, quite narrow. Where the door butts up against the "PARVEKE" wall, it would only be 1" - 1 1/2" wide (~25-37 mm) and should fit against the trim between the existing window and door in that wall.
You would, in effect, be using the "PARVEKE" wall as the right side of the door's frame instead of using that part of the frame. This would take some careful work to ensure that the door's top track/frame is accurately attached to that wall so the door can slide properly.
The door would open into the wall to the left (from the point of view of the drawing) and close to the right against the window/door trim.
You might need to adjust/replace the existing trim so that it's a flat surface for the door to close against if you need a good, tight closure. i.e. if you have some sort of curved surfaces on the trim now, the door may not fit well against it.
A matching pocket-door (opening whichever direction is most convenient/aesthetically pleasing) at the other location is an easy install.

Make both doors barn doors.

Barn doors slide along the wall (instead of inside the wall like a pocket door) and don't swing. They take up minimal floor space.
It's possible that the door that meets the "PARVEKE" wall will butt up against the trim (you'd want it to be on the window side, not the door side) and that may not be optimal, but you would still be able to operate the window.
Install a matching door at the other location.

Offset the "PARVEKE" wall door further to the left.

This will take the most work.
Build a short stub wall dividing "MH" and "OH" and have this meet the "PARVEKE" wall, replacing the trim between them with a wall at a 90° angle.
You now have the exact same wall condition for this door as you do for the one to the left and you can use any door you choose in any width you desire without worrying about running into the trim between window and door (since that trim no longer exists).

A fourth option:
Drop the door at the "PARVEKE" wall and go with only the door on the left.


Outlet w/3 neutrals, 3 hots, 1 ground? I've been replacing outlets in a bedroom in the house I just bought. The outlet near the floor, near the light switch in this bedroom has 3 hots, 3 neutrals, and 1 ground run to it.  It's an older outlet with 12-gauge wiring and 2 hots and 2 neutrals are pushed into the back quick-connect spots and 1 of each is on the corresponding terminal screw on either side of the outlet.  Ground is, of course, attached to the ground terminal screw.

That being said, my new outlet back push-in terminals only accept 14-gauge wire, so I can't hook it up the same way.  That being said, is this the correct approach?

3 neutrals and neutral pigtail to wire nut; pigtail to neutral terminal screw
3 hots and hot pigtail to wire nut; pigtail to hot terminal screw
1 ground to ground terminal screw

There are no switched outlets in the room, by the way.

Thanks!!

Whenever you see neutrals pigtailed, leave it that way.  The circuit might be a MWBC or "multi-wire branch circuit".**

Here, the more likely reason is they're using this box as a junction.  It's a good practice, and most receptacles don't have 3 attachment points.  (you can use the back wires, OR the screw terminals, not both at once.)

In fact, don't use "back stabs" at all (where you push the wire in and it grabs). The mechanism is cheap and horrible (there are 4 on a 60-cent socket, hello). They frequently fail, causing internal arcing, and they burn and melt the receptacles and the wire.

Do Not get clever and pigtail a 14 AWG wire to the receptacle.  As long as all the wire in the circuit is 12 AWG, you can use a 20A breaker.  If even a single inch of 14 AWG is part of the circuit, you must use a 15A breaker.

Actually you can go the other way and upgrade the receptacle to 20A.  As a rule, those tend to be the higher quality receptacles in the $3-4 range.

And those better receptacles often have a feature called "screw-and-clamp". It has back-holes, but they are directly behind the side screws, and tightening the side-screw is the force that clamps the wire.  These are fine. Here's a page on the difference.

(by the way, 15A receptacles are rated 20A internally by UL requirement; they are only constrained to 15A per socket).

** An MWBC is an efficient way to add a second 120V circuit with only one more wire; sharing neutral and ground.  Since the neutral is shared, pigtailing is vital so changing an outlet doesn't interrupt the other circuit's neutral.  New MWBC circuits must have a maintenance shut-off that disables all circuits; but "belt and suspenders" as they say.


Why do some LED lights go dim while others go out completely? When dimming LED lights with an LED dimmer, why do the LED lights at the end of a string of lights go off when LED lights at the beginning of a string of lights go dim but stay lit?

This application is in a kitchen. The LED dimmers were a Lutron Diva C.L Single-Pole/3-Way CFL/LED Dimmer White purchased at Menards. The LED bulbs were Exclusive EcoSmart 60-Watt Equivalent A19 Non-Dimmable LED Light Bulb Daylight (4-Pack)Model#  B7A19A60WUL34 purchased at Home Depot. One dimmer controlled 4 bulbs from one location. When dimmed, the 2 bulbs in the string of lights closest to the dimmer did dim to a minimum but the 2 bulbs in the string of lights farthest from the dimmer shut off completely. The other dimmer controlled 8 bulbs from one location. When dimmed, the 6 bulbs in the string of lights closest to the dimmer did dim to a minimum but the 2 bulbs in the string of lights farthest from the dimmer shut off completely. All of the bulbs used were exactly the same. Perhaps the bulbs were not compatible with the dimmers. Originally I purchased the dimmers at Menards closer to my office. I installed the dimmers using the existing LED bulbs, not knowing they were the kind that would not dim. I then purchased the LED dimmable bulbs from Home Depot closer to home.

Because it's not enough to have an LED rated dimmer.  You also need dimmer-rated LEDs.

What's happening is the dimmer needs to power itself.  Some dimmers power themselves by using a neutral wire.  But those which don't, power themselves by leaking a small amount of current through the light bulbs.  Historically, incandescent bulbs didn't mind that.  However, the more efficient LEDs see a small trickle of power as a command to "come on slightly".  Many LEDs made for dimming have an extra circuit to cope with this.

You should also check your dimmer to see if it has a "hard off setting". Some dimmers have a smooth range in the dimming zone, but if you push harder, you will click past a detent, and into a "hard off" setting.  That setting is to allow you to safely change light bulbs without getting nailed.


Refrigerator and wall socket next to it went out at same time Last night I made coffee in a coffee maker plugged into a wall socket next to the refrigerator (the fridge has it's own circuit). The coffee was made but later that evening I found both appliances off. I checked the circuit breaker box and no circuits were off but I did an off/on for the fridge circuit and the wall circuit but no change. The fridge is 20+ years old but was doing fine. None of the nearby GFCI circuits have tripped. Does both going out at the same time indicate any particular problem?

Nearly all failures of this sort are a connection failure in an outlet box at or upstream from the failed outlet. As stated many times here, back stab outlets are notorious for eventually failing.   Cable failures inside wall are extremely rare but can be caused by rodent damage or physical damage like drilling to a cable to hang something on the wall!
Best approach is to determine which circuit the failed outlets are on, turn off the breaker and start pulling outlets and examine them.  While doing that, if they are back-stabs, it's a good idea to either reattach the wires using the screws or if old, just replace them with a good quality outlet (not the 79 cent specials)!


Am I doing something wrong with this sanding job? I'm trying to finish a finishing job on a dresser; I abandoned the project (long story) a while ago after getting a few drawers done, and I've since lost the exact instructions I was following. After putting the polyurethane on the third drawer, I realized I must have used two coats of stain on the first drawers, so I sanded the thing with 60-grit sandpaper to get rid of the polyurethane and start over with the staining.
Thing is, while most of the drawer is looking fine and ready to be stained again, the shorter edges, which have a nice sloped curve to them (see images), look seriously scratched up, as if I were sanding against the grain or something. I always sand along the length of the drawer (which is rather tricky on the short edges), so I'm at something of a loss as to what's going on, especially as the longer edges (which are also sloped) look fine.
Here's what I'm talking about:

I doubt I'll care that much once it's all done, but it seems worth knowing: Is there something subtle about sanding edges like these that it looks like I'm missing?

The short ends you pictured are the cross grains of the board. What I see is that you have used a too coarse sandpaper on these edges. This should be easy to fix. You need to step down the grit of the sandpaper. Any final sanding should be done with 220 or 320 paper. On these end details, use fine paper, break its (paper's) back so it is flexible, and take your time working it on these ends by hand. It may take a few minutes, but it will smooth out nicely.


Pilot light device with I want to upgrade the light switches in a room.  I have a 3 gang box, two single pole switches and an indicator light for one of them (the basement light switch). The indicator light is its own thing and uses its own space in the box. All I find in the big box stores is switches with built in indicators. But I need to fill three slots in the box. And I would also need the switch cover to have a lens to show when the indicator is on.  Can't find that either. What's currently installed is from the 1960s and needs to be replaced. Thanks everyone.

If I am reading your question right what you are looking for is a jewel light, which you won't find in a big box retail store but you should be able to find on line. This is an image of a red jewel light.

If that seems a little more than you want to handle, you might try and install a switch with a lighted handle and buy a wall switch blank for the other slot.

These can be found in some big box hardware stores, usually in white. If not then you can also order these on line.

Good luck.


With circuit off, why would neutral wires spark and lights on a different circuit flash? 70 year old house with a breaker panel that was upgraded from fuses about 20 years ago. A couple new circuits were added at that time for the kitchen and laundry room, but the wiring in this particular situation is all the original.
Replacing a ceiling fixture, I turned off the breaker for the circuit that the fixture is on and removed the old fixture. There are four white neutrals bundled together into a old rusty wire nut (I have a new red one ready to go,) and a single black hot wire. This box is controlled by a single switch.
I removed all the wire nuts and old mounting bracket, and was screwing in the new mounting bracket - nudging the bundled neutrals around in order to do so - when there was a tiny spark on the neutral tips and lights on a nearby circuit flashed. Happened so quickly I wasn't sure I hadn't imagined it.
I jostled the neutral bundle around a bit and no reaction, so I continued. When I went to pull the neutral bundle through the new bracket in order to get ready for the new fixture wire, a definite spark flew and the lights on that nearby circuit completely went out. Wiggled the neutrals some more and power was restored to the other circuit.
Promptly put the nuts back on the exposed wires and let it be. Time to call a pro but what would be happening here? I've been in this house for 30 years and have personally replaced all the fixtures, plus most switches and outlets at one point or another and I have never run into an issue like this. Am I correct in guessing that the neutrals on this circuit are in contact with a hot wire on that adjacent circuit - either by loose connections, or worn insulation?
Thanks,
Jamie

It sounds like you have a neutral shared between loads on two (or more) circuits. This can be hazardous for a couple of reasons.
Firstly because when a neutral that is supplying a load is disconnected it will become live. So you test for dead with everything connected and it looks fine, but then you disconnect the neutrals and suddenly you have a live wire in the box.
Secondly because the neutral conductor may not have adequate overload protection.
There is a legitimate construction known as a multi-wire branch circuit where two separate hots share a neutral, but extra precautions are needed to make it safe. Firstly the two hot lines must have "common maintenance shutoff", either with a double pole breaker or with the two breakers handle-tied together. Secondly the two hot lines must be on different "legs" of the supply to prevent overloading of the neutral conductor.


Can I have underfloor heating with solid oak floor? I've seen that many underfloor heating mats (the electric ones) specify the need for tile or stone floor and I'm wondering if it will work as efficiently under a solid oak floor? (or any wood floor for that matter)

Also what will be the difference between 100, 150, and 200 w/m2 in the heating mat? What is usually used in  alounge?

We have a water based underfloor heating system fitted under wood (old pine I think, not oak) floorboards which works fine.

It will be less efficient than a tile or stone floor as wood has lower thermal conductivity than stone or tile. You would have to fit a more powerful heat source to gain the same temperature gain in your room. It might even be the case that you can't get mats that are powerful enough - the water pipes we have are too hot to touch with bare hands - if you had enough current to produce that amount of heat you might be in danger of melting the wires.


How to keep door open or closed automatically? Our bathroom door is not closing properly or people forget to close it, and then it makes noise when the wind moves it.

I would like to implement something like in the Q&A "How can I make a door open or close depending on the door position?", but with some modifications:

the falling latch should be removed to avoid noise
the full angle is 90 degrees, so the threshold would be around 45 degrees
the door should open/closed even when small forces apply, e.g. wind

I guess using 2 pneumatic dampers and some levers positioned at the right angles should do the trick, but my imagination is not good enough to figure out how exactly.

If there's a name for this thing, an off-the-shelf solution would work too!

For an "off the shelf" solution, just use a door closer that has a "keep open" or "hold open" function. It will close the door, unless it's fully opened to the point of engaging the "keep open" function (or in some cases a knob on the close arm needs to be engaged to "keep open".)

It will not do any "open if here, close if there" games. It might be possible to configure one to keep the door open unless latched closed, but I haven not ever seen/tried that, while the stock "keep closed" function is utterly standard.

Spring hinges (more common for home "door closer" function) and a doorstop with strong magnets for the "keep open" would be a less obtrusive method.


Steel Stud Galvanic Isolation I am building a light-gauge steel frame workshop that is made from 0.55mm cold-formed 90mm x 45mm (2"x4") light-gauge steel studs.  The structure is wrapped in 25mm (1") of extruded polystyrene (XPS) insulation and then 12mm (1/2") plywood cladding (siding).  The cladding requires stainless screws due to the CCA preservative and the proximity to the ocean also requires stainless screws to meet New Zealand building regulations.
What methods could be used to allow using stainless screws in the galvanized steel studs?  I would think there would be something similar to plastic wall anchors that could be used but I haven't found any references for it.
I would like to have a few options to consider before discussing with the architect and building inspector so a final decision can be made on the spot.
Update 1
I did find a B8 coating from Bremick that is an electroplated zinc and nickel blend that is compatible with galvanized steel and may have enough corrosion resistance to be substituted for stainless 304 or 316.

I also found some bi-metal wing screws that have a hardened steel tip and a few threads welded onto a stainless head and shank, but it doesn't look like the hardened steel tip is intended to be load bearing and is just there to drill through the steel stud quickly.
Update 2
After a bit of back-and-forth between the inspector, architect, and engineer, the conclusion is that:

The B8 screws are acceptable since they are AS3566 Class 4+  corrosion level (ISO 9223 Category 5)
Stainless steel grade 304 or 316 will also both work since the metal framing is formed from galvanized sheet and the stainless-to-steel connection will be inside the thermal envelope of the building.  This metal combination is not permitted for the corrosion zone of the structure for timber framing standard NZS3604 (which assumes there is contact with moisture), but it is allowed for by the National Association of Steel Framed Housing (NASH) for metal framing formed from galvanized sheet (which assumes no permanent moisture contact).

Update 3
After researching the perfect screws and managing to get my hands on them, I did some tests.  The results were a bit surprising, I'll get some photos in the next few days and post the results since it will likely be useful for others that are in the same situation.

@Jon, @Freeman, and @ThreePhaseEEl, thank you for your comments.
So the conclusion was that stainless steel is fine as long as the junction between the galvanised steel and stainless is inside the building envelope which ensures that there is never enough moisture to cause galvanic corrosion.
Galvanised fasteners are NOT allowed to be exposed externally for the building site since I am within 500m of the shoreline, although it is a protected inlet and the site is 50m above sea level.  Existing galvanised fasteners on the house which has been in place for 40 years are still rust free, so local conditions are more mild than the actual corrosion zone specified on paper.  The H3.2 CCA treated cladding requires stainless fasteners, but assumes that they will be exposed.
In my use case, the fasteners will be covered with decorative battens that are affixed with adhesive sealant then painted, so the fasteners will be protected.  They hold the cladding on, but are otherwise not structural.
Fastener Test Results
The stack-up is:

0.75mm steel framing
30mm PIR insulation
Moisture barrier
12mm of plywood cladding (non-structural)

The total thickness is 42mm and a minimum of three threads must be left exposed on the inside.  Allowing for the taper or drill point on most screws required between 65mm and 70mm total screw length.  Many of the specialty fasteners were only available up to 60mm.
The steel framing is G550 Zincalume and is 0.75mm thick.  The thickness turned out to be the major problem which was too thick for most stainless screws made for wood and too thin for self-drilling screws made for 1.5+mm metal.
Bi-metal Stainless Screws
These screws have a steel self-drilling head welded to the stainless steel screw.  These should work great, but unfortunately were not available in the 65mm length that I needed.
Wing-Tek Screws
Wing-tek screws have a drill point and small metal wings on them.  The wings drill a clearance hole in the wood and then break off once they hit the metal.  Unfortunately the 0.75mm steel was too thin for this to work consistently and sometimes the wings would go through the steel as well.  This happened on 1 out of 3 screws in my testing.
Drill-point Screws
Drill-point screws are designed to drill an interference fit and then the threads are cut into the metal.  These screws are used for structural connections.
Since I am attaching plywood cladding to the steel framing, I would ideally use these by pre-drilling the wood and then affixing the screw.
From my testing, these screws did not work since the drill point created a clearance hole and the threads were loose such that the screw could be easily moved side-to-side since it was essentially sticking out because of the foam insulation.
Doing a pull-out test by hand, I was able to move the screw back and forth a few times and then pull the screw out.  I expect that wind and thermal movement would cause these screws to back out over time.
Bremick Multi-one
Great screws, but they suffered the same problem as the drill-point screws of cutting too big of a hole before threading and also failed the pull-out test, but held better than the drill-point screws.
T17 Wood Screws
These screws have a tapered needle-point tip with a slot for cutting threads.  Instead of drill a hole, they basically peel the metal away which effectively increases the thickness of the metal. They hold tightly and are often rated for drilling into thin steel.
Needle Point Screws
Chipboard screws have a needle point and are available in stainless steel.  I tried several of these and 2 out of 3 dulled when going into the G550 steel.  If I pre-drilled, they would often snap off or bend before being fully seated.
Decking Screws
There are thousands of different types out there and I ended up finding some 5mm x 65mm coated steel screws with a T17-type tip from Optimaxx.  These have passed a 2000+ hour salt spray test and have a 20-year exterior corrosion protection.  I screwed some test samples of the screws into steel framing, removed them, and then placed them in sea water on top of a piece of the H3.2 CCA-treated cladding and allowed this to wet and dry out every day.  I have another sample with the cladding, insulation, and screw that is sitting outside in the weather.  After 3 months, neither have any corrosion on them.
The cladding screws need to have a durability of at least 15 years, so the inspector did not have any concerns.
Given no suitable alternatives, no corrosion with the tests samples, and the fact that the existing structure on the site with exposed galvanised fasteners in the same H3.2 CCA timber and has not shown any corrosion in 40 years gives me some confidence that this will work.

References

https://buildsteel.org/contractor/3-questions-ask-choosing-fasteners-cold-formed-steel-framing/ - fastener selection
https://www.buildmagazine.org.nz/index.php/articles/show/corrosion-of-fasteners - corrosion in treated timber


Exposed Romex inside sink cabinet Is it legal by the NEC to have exposed Romex cable inside a kitchen sink cabinet?

It depends on the inspector, and whether or not they consider it exposed to physical damage.


Circuit breakers off, but meter still running I purchased a house a few weeks ago and got the power connected about a week ago. The house has been empty and I leave all the circuit breakers off. The Meter is digital but the display doesn't seem to work. I can check online with a few days delay. I decided to check and to my surprise there's a 82 kw usage at a supposed rate of 27 kw a day. I immediately called the power company and they said that might be a deviation to ground. The outside main breaker is on.

Is this possible even when there's no power inside the house?
If so how can I test where is this deviation at?

If you have all of the other breakers turned off and the ONLY thing that is on is the Main breaker, then there is a problem between the main and the rest of the breakers, or between the meter and the main. If you have even 1kWH of power use when the Main breeaker is open, then that says there is a problem with the meter, socket or wiring after the meter. Given that the meter display is also non-functional, I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's a meter problem. If your main breaker is open, there is no way that there should be ANY power consumption whatsoever, not even 1kWh.

Another possibility however: Often times someone will tap into a neighbor's line, AFTER the meter, to siphon off power for things like grow lights for their pot plants. It's rare, but it happens because Law Enforcement can sometimes track down grow operations by monitoring power use so they steal power from neighbors to avoid detection. Look for evidence of a hidden extension cord or wiring that has been added when the house was abandoned. Thieves can be very clever in that respect. The drop to 1kWh may be the result of them seeing you looking at it so they curtailed their activity until you give up. In fact they may have damaged the meter display so that you could not see it running when all of your breakers were off.


How should I add lighting to a low ceiling basement? I have a basement ceiling that's around 6'6" high and currently the lights are standard bulb outlets that are attached to the beams so they sit down at eye level in the room. This means when you're walking around you tend to accidentally back up into exposed lightbulbs often.

I'd like to put some sort of recessed lighting between the beams out of the headroom. I can't seem to find a recessed lighting can that fits within a 6inch beam depth and looks appealing (most are supposed to be burred in the ceiling with trim put on after). I'd like to avoid using long florescent bulbs and stick with standard outlets or some sort of LED bulb. I will be using CFL's or LED bulbs so heat isn't going to be an issue next to the wood.

*Updated with a picture
-As you can see the current light sockets are placed below the beams. My original thought was to just move them higher up, add more, and put in smaller CFL bulbs. I'm trying to find a more aesthetic looking idea for the basement.

I have fluorescent tube lights in my crawlspace (talk about low headroom..). There's two fixtures each with two bulbs, which adequately light an area about 20' x 10' (and 4' high). They're mounted so they are centered between joists, and the middle of the bulb is right at the bottom of the joist (so the bulb hangs down about 1/2" below).

One of these was already there when I bought the place, it is hung using chains from hooks screwed into the subfloor above. I actually just put the other one up on the weekend, and I just cut a couple pieces of 2x4 to span between the joists, mounted them at the correct height, then just screwed the fixture to them (they're placed at both ends).

I should also point out, I had an electrical inspection done after I moved in (for insurance because of aluminum wiring). The existing fixture had an extension cord end on it, so it plugged into a socket. The inspector told me that wasn't allowed, as a permanent fixture couldn't have a plug - so I had to hardwire it (there was another switched screw-in type bulb in another part of the crawlspace, so it just went to there). The new one I just put in is obviously also hardwired to that.


How do I wire a brand new cooktop that has no white neutral wire? My old cooktop which is being replaced connects to a j-box with black, red, white, and bare ground wires, which goes to a 40 amp circuit breaker (US here, noticed this site is popular with Europe too).

We just bought a brand-new Bosch cooktop which only has black, red, and bare ground wires and says, "Connect only to a 3-wire, 120/240-volt power supply; the neutral conductor is not required for the operation of the appliance. The potential at the power supply electrical connections shall be 150-volts-to-ground or less." It also mentions wanting a 30 amp circuit breaker and being compatible with 240 or 208 volts (which I believe means it can handle single or 3-phase current, which is good since I don't know which we have).

I may be mixing up two questions here (circuit breaker amps and neutral wire issue) but can I wire this to the existing setup, or do I need to have the electrician come in and change something at the breaker box?

Note that I am fully aware the right answer is to call the electrician in to handle this and double-check everything -- I feel it is important for me to understand how this all works before calling someone in so when I talk to them I can make sure we are on the same page.

In this case, you would simply not hook up the neutral wire.  Instead you can just put a wirenut on it and tuck it neatly into the electrical box.

Typically 240V appliances require the neutral wire so that they can run the electronics at 120v or provide a plug on the appliance.  In this case, these devices are hooked up to one leg of the hot and the neutral, giving 120V.

If no neutral is required, then the device can only operate on 240V/208V, though at 208V you should expect the oven to take longer to heat up.

What it means by "Connect only to a 3-wire, 120/240-volt power supply; the neutral conductor is not required for the operation of the appliance,"  is that the 240V needs to come from two legs of 120V service; this device won't function on 240V mains like you'd find in Europe.


Bizarre Behaviour with CFL Ballast (light turns on when I touch the physical ballast) I recently took an old ballast I had lying around and installed it as a shop light over my desk. I took an extension cord and stripped the wires and connected all the whites, all the blacks, and attached the ground to the metal fixture itself. I then wired in a switch and plugged it into an outlet.

When I turn the fixture on, the CFL tubes glow a dull orange at each end and will only fully illuminate when I physically touch the fixture and essentially ground it. What did I do wrong?

Note, this doesn't happen all the time. If the fixture has been on for a while and I turn it off and turn it back on, it does so fine w/o me needing to touch it.

This is extremely common behavior for old fluorescent ballasts, though the reason for it depends on exactly what type of ballast it is.

If it is a really old model that uses a replaceable "starter" cartridge, it is likely that the starter needs to be replaced.

If your ballast does not require a starter, the issue most likely the lack of a ground plate behind the bulbs. "Rapid Start" magnetic ballasts require the metal plate that makes up the back of the fixture to be grounded, which provides a pathway for the "radiated" high voltage current that starts the lamp.

If the fixture is already properly grounded and this is still an issue, then it is likely that the ballast is failing and is just too weak to provide a good starting current.