Why does my first floor thermostat also make my third floor baseboards turn on? (Possibly related to this question but I do not have the expertise to diagnose at the level of the author of that question)
I moved into a new house recently that was billed as having three heating zones, one per floor. The home inspection did not turn up anything unusual, though the inspector really just made sure the boiler was running and he could feel heat on one floor.
After moving in a few days ago, my wife and I had a hard time sleeping the first night or two because it was so warm in our bedroom on the third floor! After some experimenting, I have discovered that the first floor thermostat seems to make the baseboards on the third floor run in addition to the ones on the first floor. The third floor thermostat will also make the third floor baseboards run, but not the first floor ones (I think -- haven't actually verified that).
I went down in the basement to follow the piping around and it all seems correct in that I didn't see any odd runs up to other floors off of the first floor run. The only common connection point I could find was what I assume to be the return.
So, this leads me to believe there is a wiring issue with the relays and/or pumps that control zones 1 and 3. I have attached photos of both sets of equipment. The third floor is hooked up to the R847A on the left, while the first floor is hooked up to the R845A on the (far) right.
Note the brown wiring that connects all three relays to each other. I don't know why this is here (as this is my first time dealing with baseboard heat, boilers, relays, and pumps) but my suspicion is that the issue lies here somewhere.

Below are the pumps that connect the boiler output to the various baseboard runs. Again, third floor is on the left and first floor is on the (far) right.
I've noticed there is an additional box (shown in the bottom left of the photo below) that the R847A also connects to. I'm not sure of its purpose. This is my second area of suspicion.

I realize nobody may be able to fully diagnose the issue from these photos, but I'd like to see if there is an easy answer before I call in a heating system specialist.
Thank you!

There's a chance that a backflow-preventer valve is stuck open, allowing hot water from Zone-One piping to flow "backwards" into Zone-3 piping.  See if you can find these valves- they likely are close to your furnace. They are probably green, with a directional arrow printed into the metal housing (and have only one inlet and one outlet).
Also,  test by "feel" : when the circulator pump for Zone-1 comes on, does the circulator for Zone 3 turn on? .   Or, simply close that valve (knob just above the circulator) for Zone3 and see if that stops the warming. If so, it's almost certainly a jammed backflow preventer.
I have successfully "tapped and tweaked" backflow preventers to unstick them.  All that's inside one is a weighted plunger which, under reverse pressure, drops down and seals the valve opening (under positive pressure, it slides upwards to let water flow in the desire direction).


LED Downlight, in a box, on the wall, with lamp wire? The bathroom in my new apartment is sorely lacking in light. There is a wall of ceramic tiles blocking the light from the ventilator fan/light fixture reaching the shower, and its just in a bad place frankly. I don't even get enough light at the mirror due to the angles.
Since I can't/won't make any structural changes, I wanted to see if there was any issues with the following:
Using this MDF Wainscot panel (I will be cutting it down to a single 2ft x 1ft panel):

And this 75W (13W) LED down light or similar, very thin, has bare wire or edison adaptor:

And wire it to a standard lamp wire:

Essentially, make a small box with the LED, hang it on the wall and plug it in, instead of direct wire?

Wires obviously inside the box. May just use the edison adapter if the lamp cable has the same edison base size, so no twist nuts.
The MDF I'll paint with latex paint on the sides and back, and it won't be near water. It will go over the mirror/cabinet, and the outlet is a GFCI. US 120v.
Is there any issues with this? Will the light be affected by being in a small box, or mounted vertically instead of horizontally?

If this is using bare wire and nuts, you'll need a (shallow plastic) old-work box to hold the junction between the fixture and the cord.  The Edison-base-connection doesn't need such treatment, but in either case, you'll need to make sure that this rig is mounted securely, and has no exposed metallic parts (since there's no ground wire).

The flexible cord is OK, BTW, as per NEC 400.7 point 2 (i.e. a luminaire-to-nearby-outlet connection).  Also, the LED shouldn't care about being in a small-ish box nor about mounting orientation -- it's also a wet location rated fixture, so it can go in the bathroom without worries there.


How do I measure for replacement screws? I'm attempting to replace some screws. The problem is, I don't have any existing to compare against a chart.

How can I measure the tapped length and diameter? Obviously, thread spacing is still a concern.

I went to my local hardware store and worked with the clerk to find the right screw. I was able to measure the millimeters in depth and I already knew it was a machine screw type.

We went through about 12 different screws until we found what we were looking for.

In case anyone was wondering, I was looking for mounting screws to fit the riser of my recurve bow.


How powerful of a hammer drill do I need to make holes in a concrete ceiling? I want to mount a cornice for curtains on a concrete ceiling. So I believe I need some kind of hammer drill. I would like to know, how powerful should it be for this kind of work?

You can drill through concrete even without a hammer drill, really it's just a function of time and energy.  How many holes do you have to drill? How big and how deep? For two small holes, I wouldn't really worry about it (so what if they take 5min each?), but if I had to drill 20 large holes, I'd want something like a rotary drill.

Good bits will make quick work of the job too, and low end bits in the best drill will be slow and tedious.

For small holes (say 1/2" or less diameter, regardless of depth), I'd say use a standard hammer drill.  Anything larger, rent or buy a rotary drill.  For really big holes (several inches in diameter), you need a core drill.


Can I use self leveler over existing floor First the floor is a mess. Is a closed in back porch that had glued down linoleum on it. Is un even. Most of linoleum was scraped up and then a garage floor paint was applied on top of that. Now the paint is peeling and chipping in spots because of moisture coming up from concrete that was never sealed because it was a back porch originally. Can I use a self leveling concrete over this mess and start fresh or do I have to have all of this grinded out?

Use Plani patch 1mix 2 liquid looks like milk try to get loose paint off first


How safe are flammables as indoor cleaners? I just cleaned some range hood duct with Seafoam. I was wondering how long after initial application things like it or rubbing alcohol remain active on the surface to present a fire hazard. How do you know which ones are and aren't safe for indoor use where there may be sources of heat nearby (like the kitchen etc.)?

Using any volatile and flammable fluid indoors can pose serious health and property damage if used in a reckless manner. By reckless I should say "not adhering to the warnings by the manufacturer". If the item to be cleaned can not be relocated outside than precautions should be taken to limit the build up of explosive vapors. Allowing outside air to circulate through the room to remove the fumes will reduce the chance of a serious "flash over". It would be wise to note any appliances (water heater, stove, heater, etc.) that have an automatic or standing ignition that could ignite fumes. Also realize that even an electric spark from something as innocuous as an electrostatic spark from a carpet can be enough to initialize an explosion. As for knowing when the fumes have dissipated enough to be safe: leave the windows open long enough (after you've capped the fluid and sealed any rags containing residual traces in a metal container) to allow stale air to be replaced. Use your olfactory (nose) senses; if you smell fluid than it's still in the room.


Looking to replace light switches - 2x blue, 2x black wires I'm looking to replace a light switch. Upon opening up the switch, I'm greeted with this:

I would like to replace with this:

For context, this is a commercial in-conduit wiring. I want to replace my HPS lights with dimming LEDs, hence the additional purple and gray wires on the new switch.

Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Edit: I opened up the junction boxes in line and here's the wiring:

This junction box is directly in line with the switch:

This is the junction box the first light is hanging from:

And this is the junction box furthest from the switch:

And as requested, a picture of the breaker:

There are four HPS lights that this switch controls.

Your current circuit is 240V split phase, which means both wires are hot and there is no neutral.  Therefore, to switch it on and off, both hot wires need to be disconnected together.  Your switch is only capable of switching one of them.

Simplified image of your current wiring, with colors re-marked for consistency:

I can think of two possible solutions:

Option 1: Separate Switch and Dimmer

Use another dimmer, in addition to your current switch.  Your switch is really two devices in one -- a switch to cut power to the lights, and a signaling device to tell the lights how much to dim.  However, there's no reason these two devices need to be combined.  You can keep using your current two-pole switch for the on/off function, and get a dimmer that only has the 0-10V dimming function (Example) -- it will only have the purple and grey wires. You don't need to put it next to the current switch, though you will probably want to for convenience's sake.

Option 2: Re-wire Circuit for 120V

Since your new lights use much less power than your old ones did, you don't need the extra power that a 240V circuit provides anymore.  One of the current hots can be replaced with a neutral wire, and then the combination switch/dimmer you bought will be compatible.  However, since NEC doesn't allow re-labeling wires at this size, you would need to pull out one of the current hot wires and replace it with white or grey wire.  At the breaker panel, the remaining hot will land on one side of the breaker (or replace it with a single-pole breaker), and the new wire will land on the neutral bus.  Then, at the switch location, simply wire-nut the neutral wires together.

Diagram of wiring re-configured for 120V:

Separately from all of this, you'll need to run dimming control wires to each fixture.  Check the labeling on the fixture to see whether you can run the wires in the same conduit as the power (Class 1 wiring) or if you need to use a separate wiring method (Class 2).


Is my plan for an air admittance valve ok? I am in the middle of finishing my basement and want to add a sink that will attach to an existing kitchen drain from above. I don't have a way to vent the sink easily unless I use a Air Admittance Valve. The drain will run about 5 feet, make a 90 degree and run another 4 feet. Would the attached diagram work correctly? Anything in blue is the new plumbing.

The valve needs to be downstream of the trap, basically in the position an actual vent would be.

source

Also, be sure they're legal where you are. My local inspector forced me to run a new vent line and tie into the existing stack above the upstairs sink drain when I wanted to add a laundry drain.


How far in from the wall do the first brackets go when hanging closet rod? I need to add closet rods to a very unusual shaped closet.  I'm awaiting exact measurements, but what I have is:  Door Width 31", Trim around each side of door inside of closet 2", Depth of closet from door to back wall 5-6'.  This is a narrow deep closet.

I want to hang and upper and lower bar.  I plan to put the upper rod wall to wall, with the rod being above the door - of course not all space can be used unless the door is taken off.  The second rod, assuming the cavity is really only 5', will only be 24" to allow for the door to sweep back to the right - across from the poles.

I can get a metal 8' 1 1/4 " diameter pole and cut the first 24" off for the lower rod.  The upper rod will be cut from the remaining 6'.

I plan to use heavy duty shelf and rod supports to provide support at each end and the middle if necessary.  I could instead (or also) use closet pole sockets on 3 of the ends on the two poles.  Do those work best, or the brackets, and if brackets - how far in from the end of the rods does one start placing brackets?

I've seen recommendations saying to place the brackets every 18", but that feels excessive for these lengths.  I'm thinking about 2 for the lower bar and perhaps 3 on the upper bar, but don't know how far from the ends to start.

What is the correct approach?

Usually 2-feet is the minimal depth or 1-foot on either side of the rod, more is better even if it's just an inch or 2. In your case you can do an upper & lower rod at both the front & the back of the closet, without any need for center supports.

However, no rods nor sockets nor anything should be just screwed in anywhere. They have to be screwed into the wall's framing studs. You probably won't find studs where you want to have the rods.

So, what needs to happen first is that full depth of the closet wood slats or slating need to be screwed to the walls at the stud locations. These slats or slating now become your nailers or screwers & only into these will you put any rod or socket screws to then have the rods wherever you want them.


Can I replace a GFCI plug with a regular duplex? I need to replace a gfci plug that won't reset. That is with nothing plugged into it. It has a regular duplex about 8 feet away that won't work because the gfci is bad. I had this circuit added about 7 yrs ago to plug in my freezer and other items on a temp basis, like an extension cord or drill and so on. Can I just replace the gfci plug with a duplex and just make both regular plugs. If so , do I just put reg. plug in or do I need to wire it different.

If the GFI was installed originally it is almost certain that it was required. Otherwise why put it in.

By removing it you will be creating a code violation and almost certainly have a less safe installation.

Just replace the GFI with another GFI.


Cutting holes in breaker boxes Can I use a hole saw to cut some new holes in the back of an outdoor breaker panel? Turns out the knockouts provided happen to be below the fire blocks in my walls... Anyway, with a small amount of luck and measuring, drilling new knockouts in the top might provide some access above the fire blocks.

Alternatively, I could always go back to my stellar idea about external conduit, but with THHN wire going in the conduit and many parallel conduits (like 6 per box to max out at 4 conductors per conduit). It'd be a whole heck of a lot easier than running the wire through the walls (I guess).

The answer is Yes you can add holes to the back of the box with a hole saw. Hole saws and slug busters are used by Electricians regularly for this. A 7/8" hole saw will provide the correct size for a 1/2" conduit, 1-1/8" will provide the correct size for 3/4" conduit and 1-3/8" is the size for 1" conduit. I use carbide cutters because they are a bit faster and last longer but a standard bi-metal hole saw will work with oil or cutting fluid if cut at a slow speed (full speed / no oil will will over heat the cutter and the teeth will dull quickly). Make sure to provide a little space from the wall of the box so the lock nut will fit inside the box. I usually cut my holes at the top or bottom sides so the wires look neat and installed in a workman manor that code requires.


ductless AC split systems? Does anyone have the ductless split AC systems offered by Mitsubishi, etc.?  Is installing them a DIY job?  Can you share your comments about them, in general?

Edit: Inspired by DA01 comment, I'd like to add:

From what I see in NE US, they don't seem that popular.  Few installers deal with them and all the quotes were higher than conventional systems.  Why would this be?

Also if they are so popular why doesn't anyone comment on them here?

Mitsubishi Mr. Slim is the most common example of such a system.  I have seen them in several places out west, but not so much in the eastern US.  They are very popular in Japan, and other Pacific countries (notice the band names of most of the systems), but they are just starting to become common in the US.

As I understand it, these systems became popular in urban settings because of high-rise buildings.  It is easier to route coolant lines down from the rooftop instead of massive central air ducts.

If you are retrofitting a house that doesn't have existing ductwork, these mini-split systems can be a preferable option.  As any HVAC contactor can tell you, designing ducts for proper airflow can be a difficult task, and it can be almost impossible to get right in existing construction.

If you get one of the multi-zone ductless systems, you have a thermostat at each indoor unit, which can allow for more flexibility in setting different rooms to different temperatures.

They generally have very high efficiency ratings.  In many cases, they have a higher SEER/EER than an equivalent centralized AC system.

The drawbacks to these systems are:

You have the indoor unit sticking out from the wall.
Since they are less popular, it can be harder to find a competant service company.
Fewer companies selling/servicing mean it can be more expensive to get work done.
The residental systems I have seen can support at most 3 indoor units.  So, if you want good airflow in every room of your house, you're not going to get it.
The residential systems I have seen max out at ~3.5 tons of total cooling.  So, a single system may be insufficient for a big (or poorly insulated) house.

I have a relative who converted his screened-in patio into a sun room.  He then added a Mr. Slim to provide A/C.  It's quiet and keeps the room cool.  And since it is independent from the main house HVAC, the whole house doesn't need the A/C running constantly.  This seems to be a really good fit.

At my office, we have one of these units installed in our server room at the office to provide cooling.  We've had several problems, but I think the unit was undersized for the application.  It's also a residental unit that wasn't made to cool a server room 24/7/365.  It's quiet though.

I don't have any first hand experience with the heat pump version of the unit, so I am not sure how well they do in a heating scenario.


Why does my dishwasher back up into the sink, but running the disposal allows it to drain? When my dishwasher runs the kitchen sink backs up. I have a two tub sink and only the side nearest the dishwasher with the garbage disposer backs up. Running the disposal for a few seconds causes the sink to drain.

I'm not sure what to look at to address this problem. It doesn't strike me as a clog because if it was the sink would drain poorly.

There is a very simple answer to your question.  Your dishwasher is draining into the side drain adapter on your garbage disposer. this was a common practice for many years. All the water draining from your dishwasher is being pumped into the upper basin side of the disposer. Solids from the dishwasher are blocking the drain in the disposer, so when you turn on the disposer, it grinds the waste and drains the water. This is actually the way it is suppose to work. Current codes require a separate trap for the dishwasher and not plumbed into the disposer. If you look at the side of your disposer, you will see the hose from the washer attached there.  Only fix is to install a new separate trap and drain for the washer.  Good luck.


Multi fuel stove problems I recently had a stove fitted and have used it 5 times in total each time it has set off my smoke alarm but the installer said this may happen as the stove needs to burn off the fuels and solvents, each time i have only lit small fires and let them burn out naturally.

The first time it gave off a horrible smell when burned the smell hasn't been as bad since but i still keep the room well ventilated.

My installer recommended i give it a good burn today to get rid of the smell totally and keep the bottom vent open, i did this and the fire was really roaring but now i have fine hairline cracks in my chimney breast and also cracks in the back panel. I spoke to the installer again and he said he had never heard of this before.

The chimney breast was warm to touch and so was the mantel. I'm seriously regretting having it fitted.

Any help would be appreciated?

As far as the smell your installer is correct, the paints and cleaners on the stove need to out gas. This can take a few hours to a few days depending on how hot you get the stove. When we used to install stoves we use to warn folks not to get the stacks above 500 deg and would leave a magnetic temp gauge on the stack. For inserts we recommended a bulb type gauge that could be placed on the stack and the gauge could be routed to the front.  Getting a rip roaring fire can cause damage to the stack, a standard fire running for several hours can and will make most brick work warm to the touch and depending on the fans or just plain heat coming from the stove the mantle will heat up. Since you now have cracks the system should be inspected. I hope they added a liner (required in my area) if a metal liner was added and you did not melt it down it should be safe to use. I would get a mechanical bulb type temp gauge that has a range at least to 500f. And install that so you don't overheat the stack again. As for other cracks and issues we would need photos to be of any help there.


What hose do I use to connect my GE dishwasher to my sink's 3/4" Tee? I recently purchased a new GE dishwasher to replace our old dishwasher. The model we bought is GDF530PGMWW. It comes with a drain hose attached (see image), and it comes with an extension hose. The sink end of the extension hose does not fit the existing Tee on our sink's drain. I purchased a universal drain hose from Home Depot and that fits on the sink's Tee (3/4"), but not on the end of the dishwasher's drain hose. Is there some kind of adapter that can change the size? It appears the drain hose that's attached is 7/8".

You'll want a barbed connector similar to this one:
Image courtesy of Lowes.com. Note that's not the right size, nor is it an adapter, it's just for illustration purposes.No endorsement intended or implied.
You'll want it to have a 3/4" barb on one end and 7/8" on the other end. You can use either plastic or brass, it doesn't matter.
I'd also suggest that you pick up hose clamps to put around where the hose ends go over the barbs, just for a bit of added security. A 1" hose clamp will adjust small enough to cover both the 3/4" and 7/8" connection with no issue, so a pair of them will be just fine. You'll probably want to be sure you've got one to attach the extender to the disposal intake as well. Better to spend an extra $2 (for expensive, fancy clamps) and not need them than to clean dirty, soapy water out from under the kitchen sink.


Are soldered electrical connections code-compliant? I was changing a switch in my house when I found a number of connections in the electrical box that were soldered rather than secured with a wire nut.  The solder joints look very well done, the conductors were twisted together nicely and the solder itself was nicely done.  It was not some oxidized amateur mess.  These joints were then wrapped in electrical tape.

Is that something that need to be concerned about?  Would it count as being up to code on an inspection?

I am in rural Minnesota, outside city limits, in an un-incorporated township.  I do see several inspection stickers on the breaker boxes in the house, so something was inspected at one point.

Update: Just to add a bit more context.   The house was constructed in 1961 and was a Gold Medallion home and as a result had lots of fancy electrical features for the day.  Much of that original wiring has been replaced with modern NM cable, however the switch I replaces was on an older circuit with wires that look similar to Romex but have a braided outer sheath and instead of a single ground there a several smaller grounds that are wound around the the other wires.

The solder joints in question were on both types of cables in the box.  So, they would have been done as part of later work.  One of the previous owners was big into Ham radio, this junction box was right outside his radio room.  In another conversation someone suggested that this was done to reduce interference, could that be a thing?

There are better ways

A wide variety of reliable splice techniques now exist. The reason for soldering "back in the day" was that manufacturing wasn't really up to making "wire nuts" and "Alumiconns" in billion quantity.  And labor was a lot cheaper.  Today, it would be nuts to use that technique, but I wouldn't condemn old work that has stood the test of  time.

I expect your electrician will see it the same way; if you presented new solder work done this way, forget it, but old work would be grandfathered.

Insulation is also a problem

The usual Home Depot advice is just put a booger of PVC electrical tape onto it. Actually, the ancients used layers of both "friction tape" (tar impregnated cloth tape) and rubber or plastic tape. The friction tape's job was to protect it from physical damage, notably bare corners or burrs from punching through the tape.  This is complicated enough that I don't advise it; in fact, I don't even like using split bolts or other uninsulated splices. When solder was used in mains wire, this work was done or overseen by a master electrician, and the electrical inspector relied as much on personal experience trusting that master.

The layers of insulation also make the joint uninspectable.  If an inspector saw a soldered rattail splice today, he'd have good reason to either assume it wasn't soldered, or that it was not properly insulated.

"Modern" soldering won't do

In mains wiring a lot of engineering is done to assure we're not wasting copper. Wires are intended to heat up, and are generally run at sane thermal limits.

Solder only has about 1/10 the conductivity of copper.

Now look at how modern soldering is done.  Here's a surface mount power jack.  You see the tiny tabs meant for the solder connection?

This is the mentality of modern, electronic soldering.  Put a tiny dit of solder there (even if you drown that tab in solder, there's just not that much tab there) and call it good.  That works because currents are small - that connector is rated for 1 amp, the limiting factor being the surface area of the solder.

It's "tack soldering", as distinct from a thorough splice like you have there, or a Western Union splice. The problem is, when you say "soldering", everyone hears "tack soldering, like done in electronics". That is not nearly acceptable.  Yes, Western Union etc. splices are alright.  They are also a "lost art".

I don't believe the Western Union splice is a lost art you should be re-creating, because there are better ways to do this today, and it would be difficult to re-create it properly without apprenticing under an experienced master.


Do wires and electical boxes need to be protected on the un-finished side of basement? I'm considering drywall cover some part of the wood frame on the unfinished side of the basement. The wires and electrical boxes are exposed as in the picture. Not sure if it is necessary.  I would appreciate your advice...

No, but they do need to be secured to the framing according to the NEC schedule. You must staple (or otherwise restrain) within 12" of each box, and every four feet along framing members, centered on the board. By doing so you reduce the likelihood of cable damage due to snags and fastener penetration.

A neat wiring job involves straight, flat runs, gentle, consistent bends, and adequate stapling. For example:


Can I turn the water supply to the shower off here (picture)? I posted earlier about a Ghroe shower faucet that wouldn't turn off. I managed to finally get the handle off and now I am looking at this inside the wall.

The flat head screws that are on the far sides behind this piece in the middle - are those what I should be able to turn to cut the water to this shower? Or is there another way?

My goal here is not to repair this whole thing rather than to see if I can just shut off the water to the shower so I can turn the house water supply back on and call a plumber during the week for a full repair or replace.

Thank you.

in the back those slotted things look like shut-off valves to me. try turning them 90 degrees using a flat-bladed screwdriver


Filling old cable holes in brick My house had several cable runs left from the previous owner that were cut and redone with every TV service they tried. A handful of the runs were brought in from the outside of the house through external walls. (My external walls are all brick.

The cables were all cut to about 6 inches in length and pointed down to prevent water from coming in when I bought the house.

I would like to remove these completely, but I have no idea what to fill in the hole with...

Can I just fill it with Silicone caulking? When I had Fios come out and rewire the box to use the clean cable runs and cat6 runs I installed in the attic, they used a translucent blue goo that hardened after about 10 minutes where they ran the cable into the house, can I fill it with that? If so, what is the goo and where can I buy it?

Thanks!

Hopefully those holes are actually sloped upward the entire way, but I would not count on it.

Silicon would be OK, especially deep in.  But there's a product called Mor-Flexx which is specifically made to look and work like mortar. A tube of this would work better than any mastic, as you can really squirt it far in.  Plus you can touch up any other cracked masonry you might have around the house.

I might also solve this exact problem using rapidset mortar in a pastry bag (to get the mortar deep into the brick).  But this can crack brick over the decades if the mortar is harder than the brick and thus expands differently (a problem in historic renovation, as older bricks are often softer than modern mortar).

That said, the Mor-Flexx is easy and will solve the problem completely.
You can then install a weatherproof cable entry point and all future installers will take the lazy way out and use it (who wants to drill brick if you don't have to?).


Does anyone know how to remove the wires from this light socket, does anyone know how I find information about this type of socket? The socket is from a wall mounted light fixture, the side of the socket says AI YACHT AT578 4/250. I've tried googling this product information but all I get is advertisements for yachts. Does anyone know how to find information about this product and also how to remove the wires from the socket. I need to repair the light fixture and in order to put it back on the wall I need to remove this light socket.

Why not just remove it at the terminal blocks visible in the background? You may have to pull them out of the wall.

These are single-use "backstab" connections.  The wire can be removed either by firm pulling or jabbing a screwdriver in the slot release there, but then, the spring will be damaged and will no longer hold reliably. You would need to replace the socket at that point.


Rewiring a boiler’s c wire for a smart thermostat I want to swap out my low-voltage Honeywell for a Nest E thermostat. When I took the Honeywell off the wall I confirmed that I’ve got a C wire running up to the thermostat but when I wired up the Nest it wouldn’t turn on. Below is a picture of the wiring at the boiler. I had a plumber look at it while he was visiting about another issue, and he said I’ve got all the necessary wiring but he didn’t know how it’d need to be rewired.
I bought a C wire adapter in case I need it for this project, but need a little help figuring out the wiring.

As it turns out, C is staring you in the face
As it turns out, the transformer is sitting right in the middle of your photos, and by matching the wiring diagrams from your boiler's installation manual to the wiring in your photo, we can determine that the C terminal on your transformer is the one with the white, black, and striped wires connected to it.  So, you can attach the spare blue wire from your brown thermostat cable to the C terminal on your transformer and use that as your C wire.


What is the best way to clean a brick paver patio? Looking for ideas on how to best clean a brick paver patio.

Background:
I had a brick paver patio installed three years ago.  The following year I had it sealed (not sure what product was used) with two coats of sealer.

The patio surely needs a good cleaning.  I have lots of trees and foliage falls and stains the patio.  There are a few places where weeds are starting go grow between pavers.  There is decent drainage but a few areas have dirt accumulated on top of the pavers.

I'm thinking of having my vinyl siding power washed and was wondering if the pavers could also get power washed.  I worry the power washing will dig out the sand between the bricks.  Power washing paver patio a good idea?

Yes, the pressure washer will dig out the sand between the bricks.  I would not recommend it.

I would suggest a stiff brush with dish detergent mixed with water.  If that is not strong enough try some professional paver cleaning products from your local home improvement store.


Corrugated vs Solid PVC for sump pump drainage I am about to do drainage project for my sump pump discharge drain. I am confused about what kind of material to use either solid PVC or corrugated.

I live in the Chicago area where winter temp gets below freezing quite often.

I was also thinking of attaching downspouts to it as well.

My questions are:

Is it better to use Corrugated or solid PVC?
How deep my trench should be?
What can I to prevent the line from freezing in winter?

You can use either.  Smooth wall PVC is a little less likely to clog, and is a little stronger but beyond that they both will carry water away.

The sump should discharge out the house above ground level.  In winter you would either detach the drain pipe from the outlet and allow the water to collect near the foundation (not ideal) or you would have some kind of air gap.  (Like a ground level drain that the discharge pipe is aimed at.)  This way if the underground portion freezes, the liquid water is still able to escape, running out over the ground.  If you skip this you could end up with a plugged discharge and a burnt out sump pump.

See: https://structuretech1.com/sump-system-defects/ for more information.


Laminate Planking will not "Click-in" So, yesterday while trying to install some flooring (Pergo -Timbercraft). I have installed it in a previous room before and had no issue. However this time while trying to fit it into my bay window on piece (the second last one...) it will not click into place. I can't get it into place no matter how hard I try. Below are some pictures. Sorry the orientation on the flooring shows it as vertical, not horizontal which would be correct - I don't know how to change it on here.

As you can see, the angle against the wall is quite small meaning as I am hammering it in (to close the gap) most of the force is just going into the pieces behind it (not to the right as it should be). Any ideas I can try?

Added picture to show the angle.

I ran into similar issue in past.  My solution was to click the 2 boards for the last row together first and then add both boards as a unit.


How to fix a leaking bath tub overflow drain? My bath tub is over the kitchen on the second floor.  It appears the bath tub overflow drain leaks a sizeable amount.  At times the kids aren't paying attention and the water goes in.  The water leaks into the kithcen cabinet below.

How best to access the overflow drain to fix this leak?  Can I wait for the kitchen remodel and try to access it from below?

Thanks in advance for any advice suggestions!

If the leak is occuring where the overflow attaches to the tub you may be able to seal it. Remove the screws that hold the overflow cover in place. Depending on the style it may also contain the tub drain lever. With the cover removed you may be able to see the contact point between the tub and the seal. Try to fill the entire sealing surface with "Plumbers Putty". Replace the cover as it will pull the overflow pipe and the tub together. If that doesn't work try this product http://www.theplumbinginfo.com/remove-replace-repair-bath-tub-overflow/. I haven't tried it but it looks like it beats tearing walls apart. As an alternative open up the wall behind the tub and after the repair leave an access panel so ot will be easier next time.


What equipment is required to install a generator? I am installing a generator to operate only my heating unit and a few circuits in my house. Do I need a transfer switch along with a sub-panel?

You need, at minimum, an interlock. That is a device which physically prevents the generator input and the main supply breaker from being on at the same time. Both can be off, but only one can be on. This is important for electrical line-worker safety.

If you buy or feel the need of an autostart generator, you will need to move loads to a sub-panel and have a transfer switch, so that the loads cannot overwhelm the generator when it auto-starts, and the transfer switch will automatically switch over (and serve the interlock function of keeping the generator off the main power lines.)

With a manual start generator and an interlock, you switch off most loads, start the generator, switch off the main, switch on the generator input, and can power anything on the main panel, but unless you have an absurdly large generator, not all at once.

Which suits you better depends on both your mindset and cost-sensitivity. Even without the cost differential I prefer the flexibility of having any circuit available. Other people may prefer a fully-automatic switchover more.


Concrete stairs substrate preparation and layering I need to pour small stair entry into my basement, about 4 steps and it is narrow, with a brick retention wall on both sides.  I was going to first evenly grade and pack the dirt, then put gravel, then pour concrete (framing and rebar aside). Does that seem like a good layering strategy? When I was pouring concrete indoors in my basement, I also used foam panel insulation and vapor barrier under wire mesh rebar and above gravel but those two parts I don't consider necessary because it is outdoors.

If you are building the stairs tight to the house, you need to go to the frost line with your concrete foundation. Run cinder block to just below the grade level, then go to the brick finish. If the stairs are small enough, just pour the concrete just below the grade and start your brick right from there. Many stairs have been built with a dirt infill then 4" of gravel over that, all on top of the footing slab. I feel that is an error in doing it that way since the dirt can take on moisture and freeze in winter. All gravel under the pour for the stairs, on top of the footing slab will keep heaving and cracking from freezing temps.

The plastic under the concrete also help slow the rate the water escapes the concrete, in essence keeping the concrete better hydrated, making it stronger. Foam panels will do nothing for it.


Remote control with offline functionality | Home Automation I would like to control a particular light with a normal mechanical switch as well as using a mobile app.
The use case is as follows:-
If the mechanical switch is ON, I want the light to glow and it's switched off if the switch is OFF.
Even if the mechanical switch is ON, I want to switch it off using a mobile app (as well as ON).

So, should I implement a staircase wiring in this case? (I do not want to use Belkin switches, I plan to use a relay, ESP8266 and arduino and, ofcourse openhab).

Is this an old method? Is there a better way to implement the same?

I can't think of a smart (home automation) switch that doesn't have that "offline" capability.  I've got Insteon (Smarthome) switches in my house; they're Decora-style paddle switches with radio- and powerline connectivity. They talk to Insteon's "hub", which in turn talks to the cloud and your mobile app. You can turn the light on or off locally or remotely, and since they're bidirectional you can see on your smartphone whether a given light is on or off.  Is what you're looking to do any more complex than that?


Removing the cartridge of a faucet I am trying to take the cartridge out of the faucet of my kitchen sink. I removed the handle and that little cap. I cannot 'isolate' the cartridge. Here are two pictures. I tried to use a pipe wrench but always got the jaws slipped off the threads.

https://imgur.com/a/i6E0L3L

Don't use a pipe wrench on those threads, you'll ruin them. Take a pair of needle nosed pliers open them up and put them in against the barbs in the collar and turn it counter clockwise. that's what the barbs are for. There are also faucet spanner wrenches that will fit in there to loosen the collar. you can gt them at most home stores, see picture below.


Wiring a timed outside light using a socket I wish to install an outside light. I want to be able to use a plug in timer so i can adjust easily.
The nearest wiring is the lighting circuit. Can i add a socket to this ?

You don't need to do that because hard-wired timers exist.

The above are designed for easy fitting to an existing light switch. A five minute job at worst.

To add a new light switch you'd typically extend the circuit as shown at

This random website (uses new-colours for T&E but you will likely find old colour T&E in older homes and so will end up with a mix but that's OK)

Whether you can wire an outside light permanently to a plug that is plugged into a socket/outlet depends on where you live. Plugs are designed for flexible appliance leads and not for solid-core cable used for fixed wiring. In many places it is not permissible to use flexible wires for fixed wiring applications.


Code requirements for lights mounted horizontally? I have a couple of lights in the basement that are mounted "naked" and horizontally.  Just would like to know if there is any restriction on doing that, e.g. height of the fixture?

While there is code that does NOT permit bare incandescent bulbs in closets and hanging fixtures over a shower zone, unfinished basements are not on the list.  As suggested by Harper, fluorescent lights are a nice "work" light.


Is it safe to have an additional load before a switch first circuit? I have a circuit going to the bathroom that is a switch first. It's only load after the switch is a simple light and bathroom fan.

Is it possible and safe to have an additional outlet before the switch that is independent of the light's on/off state?

2014 NEC, 210.11.C.3 Bathroom branch circuits. 1 20 amp shall be provided and have no other outlets. So it would be a code violation if not in the bathroom.


Adding a second motion sensor to an existing motion sensor light I have installed a HeathZenith # 5412 motion sensor light. I have added a second motion sensor to that light around the corner of the building to pick up motion from that direction the second detector is a Defiant #Cd-5716.

I simply conected the white to white, black to black and red to red. I am still experiementong with the various controls to get them to work properly, but I waNt to be sure I connected correctly.

The lights have power as when they come on they flash (like a strobe), but the little red indicator light on the main light is not blinking (the one on the secondary sensor does blink).

I have put multiple motion sensor lights (up to 3) on the same light string on circular driveways. The black to hot white to neutral With the light neutral and the red to the light string black. When any of the motion sensors detect motion the lights come on. If multiple sensors are tripped the one with the longest time or last one tripped will keep the lights on until it times out. All the sensors need to be powered from the same circuit or it may fry the controllers, trip the breakers. The only problem I have had doing this is troubleshooting when 1 sensor fails it takes time to find the bad one. This was prior to led lighting but it should work with led rated sensors also.


Toilet bowl fills and overflows but the tank won't fill toilet bowl fills and will overflow while my tank wont fill up , what is the problem?   is this a plugged up toilet?  I tried the plugger it but not doing anything
..  a couple of hrs later the bowl will empty

It sounds like there are two problems.  You seem to have a clog in the sewer line slowing the flow of water.  You said it finally drains after a while.

You also said the tank won't fill.  This sounds like either the flapper is not seating properly, there is a leak between the bowl and tank, or the float has stopped working.

You might need to snake the sewer line if a plunger isn't working.  For the flapper and float, those may need to be replaced.  Mine seem to go out after about 4-5 years.


How do I operate this valve on the line to my refrigerator? The water to our refrigerator was not turned on when it was installed and I am now trying to get the ice maker working.  There is what appears to be a water hookup behind the refrigerator but turning the handle seems to have no effect.  How do I operate this valve?

Sometimes called a cock; it is a 90 degree turn ,open/closed. The handle shows the position of the plug opening ( if it is not failed). When the handle is in line with the copper line ,it is open. When the handle is pointing to the side , it is closed. The picture looks like it is midway between open and closed.


Water hammer, PRV, and safe water pressure at water heater Our main water line into the house was making a loud whining noise whenever a shower was on, so we had a plumber come out and they decided to replace the PRV (which appeared original to the 1970's home).

However, we began to have really bad water hammer and they same company came out and tried replacing the PRV and adjusting the pressure. The thing that fixed it was opening the PRV to allow full pressure and then lowering the pressure until the water hammer came back. He then opened the pressure slightly and called it good.

Out of curiosity, I attached a pressure gauge to my water heater and was amazed that it registered 120 PSI!

Is this safe?

What else can be done to fix the water hammer issue and not expose my home to such high water pressures?

PRVs (or a Temperature and Pressure Relief Valve, as it should) have pretty much nothing to do with water hammer or the whining.

Whining

If replacing the T&P valve fixed it, then good for you, but if not, check out this wonderful This Old House video.

Water Hammer

When valves close too quickly, the inertia of the water in the pipes causes a buildup in the force against the valve, causing a hammering sound to propagate through the pipe. You can simply install water hammer arrestors at the problematic appliances.

Water Pressure

120 psi is at the high end of what (GE) appliances are likely to tolerate. Without knowing too much more about the plumbing, all I can suggest is a regulator to manage the pressure.


.5 inch copper pipe leaking at slab, .75 inch pipe from water heater enters Pictured are pipes entering my slab in the wall behind my water heater.  The wall has cellulose insulation in it, so I can't see, but my best guess is that there is a manifold in the wall there. The leaking pipe in question exits about 20 feet away, but is a half inch pipe, these are 3/4".

Should I be looking for a secondary manifold, or could there just be a reducer or tee in the slab?  My stepdad taught me not to put fittings under concrete, but I can't say it's never been done.  The house was custom built in 1983, so I have no experience with the conventions and code s of the time, being born in 85.

I want to simply cut and cap the leaking pipe before it enters the slab. It's just stubbed out on the other end.

My plan: Place a shark bite hose fitting on the end of the leaking pipe, run a house out the window. Turn on the water heater, and crack the valve and see which pipe heats up.

At that point, I will cut the water, cut that pipe, put a valve on it, shut the valve and turn on the water again. If any taps are missing hot water, I can run a new PEX drop to those fixtures.

Ok, so I got this sorted eventually.  I cut a hole in the wall to expose the manifold behind the water heater, found the line feeding my leaking pipe, cut and capped it.  That resulted in stopping the leak but also cut the hot water supply to 2 bathrooms.  I then followed the wall with the leak to its end and cut another exploratory hole in the area where it abutted the hallway wall, and found more copper exiting the slab.  After some more fiddling, I discovered that the 3/4 copper coming out of the slab was feeding the bathrooms that were missing their hot supply, and that the 1/2 copper tee off of that line that dove back into the same hole was the pipe that led to the leaking section.  I then reattached the pipe at the manifold behind the water heater, cut and capped the 1/2 inch pipe in the hallway wall, replaced the drywall and borrowed a carpet cleaner to extract as much water as possible from my brand new carpet.

So the answer ended up being that there were no fittings under the slab, the pipe was merely run under the hallway to the opposite wall where it poked out to a tee which was run under the slab down the wall.

Builders ought to have to file the complete plans with the city. Figuring out the plumbing and electrical runs in this place has been a nightmare.  Thank you all for your insight. It was helpful.


Generator tripping GFCI breakers in main panel I recently had some electrical work done on my home to bring it up to code - there was no GFCI protection in the kitchen or bathroom when we bought the house, so our electrician fitted GFCI breakers at the panel. He did not use the GFCI outlets because he explained that our existing outlet boxes were too small to fit the extra size of a GFCI.

When I plugged in my generator to my transfer switch though, and flipped the main breakers in the transfer switch from LINE TO GEN, the GFCI breakers in my main service panel immediately tripped.

I have read that this may have something to do with the fact that most portable generators come with the ground + neutral bonded to the frame. Apparently, this makes the generator a SDS (separately derived system) compliant with OSHA for use on job sites. I can confirm that my generator is like this. It says so right on the power panel.

However, when connecting to the house, I have heard that the ground + neutral are actually already bonded together in the panel, so you should "float" (disconnect) the neutral wire at the generator. However, I have also heard this increases shock risk on the generator side.

I am not positive that this is why the GFCI breaker in my main panel is tripping, but it's a hunch. It could just be that the breaker doesn't like the power signal coming from the generator.

Regardless, I'd still like to have power to my kitchen from the gen.

Any suggestions as to why this could be happening?

That's to be expected.  The neutral from the circuit is going through the GFCI breaker, but the hot is coming from the generator.  The GFCI sees this as an imbalance, since there's no current flowing through the hot side of the breaker.

Here's what your setup likely looks like (if it was drawn really quickly in MSPaint).

If you follow the current through from the generator, you'll see that it returns through the GFCI breaker.

However, since the current is not flowing through the "hot" side of the breaker.  The breaker sees an imbalance, and trips.

The cutaway in this image shows the internal circuitry of the GFCI breaker, and depicts the current flowing only on the neutral wire.

WARNING:
If the generator or transfer switch does not provide GFCI protection, the kitchen will not have GFCI protection when on generator power.


What is the smell coming through my HVAC system? If I leave the furnace fan always running for an extended period of time (to circulate and filter the air), when the central AC turns on there is a not-so-fresh smell that is emitted through the vents.  It almost smells wet or stale.

This smell eventually disappears if the fan is not run in between AC cycles.

There is a MERV-16 filter, which is regularly replaced, located within the system, between the air intake and the furnace.

What is this smell?  What is causing it?  Besides not running the fan, how do you prevent it?

Same thing my the system in my house. Uses a MERV 16 5". Smell was the filter itself. Dont know what it picked up, but it was generating its own odor. Whew ! I think it started after I baked a beef roast. which smoked a bit when in the oven.
Maybe something in rhe meat ?


Losing ceiling fans after the lightest thunderstorms. How to ascertain the cause? At my home after the lightest thunderstorms we end up losing ceiling fans - they fail to rotate. The fans' winding gets damaged despite power cuts enforced by the power supply company (they cut power during thunderstorms) and we turning off the mains. As a result, during every rainy season, we end up repairing all our fans multiple times.

We are often told by electricians that -

This is common in RCC ceilings as the surge often travels through the reinforcement's iron rods and ends up making a contact with the hook that hangs the ceiling fans
There could be some wiring issue

How can I troubleshoot this and ascertain the root cause?

It's an open secret, that No standards are followed in India, and none of the electrical or any other work is up to code.

I too had a similar problem in the apartment that I was renting in Bangalore. Every-time there was lighting and thunder, first the power used to fail, and some of the lights used to flicker, and couple of times the winding of my ceiling fans got burned, and had to be replaced.

I had a couple of electricians look at it, but they were of no help. That's when I decided to take things in my own hands, and investigate. What I found was horrible.

In several places, the switch was not on the live, but on the neutral. This meant that often the appliances were live, (had a potential of 220v) just the circuit was not complete.
The circuitry of the building was such, that there was a return current on the neutral, even when there was no electricity. This was probably due to wiring of two apartments sharing a neutral, and they having an inverter, or something.
The earthing was probably just the neutral, or the earthing plate was not properly installed.

I had to take the following steps:

Get a proper earthing plate installed, and connected.
Install a high quality electronic circuit-braker. I forget the exact details, but I think, it was dual pole & checked for the leakage current in the earthing.
Fix the wiring, to make sure all switches were on Live, and no appliance/connection was ever live with the switch turned off.
Have new wiring run to the fans, which included an Earth, which was connected to the hook that the fan was on, as well as the rod of the Fan.

After this, I never had any issues.


Circuit Breaker Upgrade Complications I'm currently renting a unit in a commercial warehouse complex. Each unit has individual MLO panels inside the unit, and then a large split meter base with individual breakers for each unit in a centralized location in a separate part of the complex.

We're trying to upgrade the that main breaker for our unit from 100A to 125A if we have to, but preferably 150A.

So the problem we're having is that the breaker in the centralized area is a Cutler Hammer QC2100, and is part of their QuickLag series, which only seems to go up to 100A. It's a cable in/cable out breaker and it connects to https://www.platt.com/platt-electric-supply/Circuit-Breakers-Cable-In-Out-Base-Mounting-Clips/Eaton/QC6BP/product.aspx?zpid=61066
instead of something like a DIN rail or a simple bolt on. The clips are attached to the enclosure, and the breakers for everyone else's units are just kinda in a row on their own separate set of clips.

Does anyone know if there's a similar style of breaker that will fit on those clips and has a higher ampacity rating? Can I remove the clips and switch to a bolt on style breaker, or install a short DIN rail and attach to that? I'm trying to avoid having to change out the entire meetering enclosure cause I'd be paying to modify 16 other tenants systems and that gets a little pricy.

my electrician and several supply houses in the area don't seem to know if there's a way to do it without upgrading the service for the entire complex, so I figured I'd ask here.

Thanks in advance.

Even if the 150A breaker existed (and it seems like it doesn't), that's unfortunately just the start. You would almost certainly need to upgrade the conductors to and from the 150A breakers for the higher ampacity, and quite possibly the conduit in which they travel as well, which would involve significant expense. And then the main panel to which they connect may not be rated for more than 100A per meter anyway.

So I'm guessing your decision is likely to be upgrade everyone to 200A potential or nothing.

I'd be curious how this actually turned out...


Added a celing fan in bedroom, need to wire for switch I recently added a box to install a ceiling fan in our bedroom. We want to convert the single switch in the bedroom to a dual switch. The single switch thats currently in, turns on power to the top outlet on an outlet panel of two. Anything plugged into that outlet (we keep a lamp plugged in) will turn on when we turn the switch on. So, we want to convert the single switch into a dual switch so that will turn the outlet (lamp) on and the other the ceiling fan. How should this be wired? Its current set up is a single switch on the wall, we ran an independent/2, black, white, ground, from the ceiling fan junction box to the swingle switch that we want to convert to a double. Thank you in advance to everyone!

I would suggest a universal ceiling fan remote control that uses a battery for power. It comes with a sender and a controller you connect to the fan. The sender works just like a hand held remote except you mount it in the wall. So all you really have to do is to leave the wiring the way it is, use a cut-in box to mount the sender and connect the receiver to the fan. I don't have a link to a site but they are in all of your big box hardware stores.

Good luck


What size is the fuse on a watermaster/orbit sprinkler timer box? Blinking red I've got a "watermaster" old sprinkler timer box.  Fuse blew, it's got a blinking red light, what replacement fuse can I use?
Appears same size as this box:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgYUyxFnlaY
It says "750mA slow burn" near the fuse location.

OK I tried some out from home depot and "5mm by 20mm 1A fast burn" was the closest they stock and seemed to work OK for me.
Appears the canonical replacement is "orbit 57003" but they're sometimes tricky to find/more expensive.  Might be able to find some equivalents online as well.


What size wire for 100 amp sub-panel from a 200amp main panel? I want to add a 100 amp sub-panel from a 200 amp main in an attached garage. It will be about 100 feet from sub to main. What gauge wire should I use? The sub panel is to hook up a 7.5 horse air compressor and a welder.

The NEC provides wire sizing based on the type to be used and the application.

(source: diychatroom.com)

But here is a useful question that's already got all the answers I believe you'll need:

What size wire should I use to feed a subpanel in my garage?


How should I interpret the results of a lead paint test? I just used the 3M lead test on this wall and I’m finding it difficult to interpret?  There is this wallboard with recent paint on it, and underneath seems like a layer of wallpaper and it seems rust colored in places.  With the rust colored test liquid it’s getting confusing.  Can anyone help?  Do we have lead?  House built in 1948, renovated before we bought it in 2013.

(https://i.stack.imgur.com/bzEuU.jpg)

The details for the 3M LeadCheck product read:

  turning bright pink when lead is present

I don't see any "bright pink" in your photo, so it seems that there isn't a significant amount of lead present.
Your test kit should contain a "Test confirmation card" which you can use to compare your results with their examples.

Even if it did indicate some lead though - if you have to tear the walls apart to get to it, then it doesn't matter.  Lead in paint is harmful when ingested, so unless you or someone you know is planning to eat your walls, you'll be fine.


How to expand my irrigation system I would like to add an additional zone to my 4 zone irrigation system. I wondering if I can just add another manifold to my current setup. Below is what it looks like. The problem I think I will run into is that this valve box doesn't have room for an additional manifold. Do I have enough PVC to cut and add an additional zone? I do have a spare power wire for an additional zone.

I'm going to refer to the valve at the top of your picture, but the same would apply to the bottom.  Between the last tee and the final ell, there is enough pipe to cut off the ell and glue on a coupling.  However, there is not enough room to glue on a coupling and a new tee to leave the top valve in its current position.  That top valve is going to have to move.  That would be a lot of trouble.

Instead, I think you should dig to the right of the picture and tap into the main line coming in to this current box.  There is bound to be a straight section of pipe that you can tee off of using a few unions or a repair coupling.  Once you tee off that main line, you can place a new valve in a smaller box wherever it's convenient.  Running your spare wire to the new box should be pretty easy as well.


Oven "flickers" in power every now and then Our oven seems to "flicker" in power every now and then. By that I mean it loses power just momentarily --- or at least it loses power long enough for the clock to reset. This has happened four times in the course of the month and a half we've been leaving here, and twice in the last two days. The circuit breaker doesn't need to be reset or anything it's just as if the power went out briefly.
The microwave nearby which also has a clock hasn't reset like this the entire time.
Also, 3/4 of the times this has happened it occurred in the middle of the night when presumably nothing was really going on in the house.
Does anyone know what's going on here or what I can do to fix it? I'm talking to a few electricians but they're solidly booked out for a few months.

This may be a device fault (loose wires, failing control panel, etc.) but it may be an actual power problem.
In the olden days, a short power outage - even a minute or two - made little difference to anything. Your AC-line powered clocks (whether in an oven or on the wall) would be a minute off and everything else would be "as it was before".
Now many devices, including ovens, have electronics that keep their state only if the power stays on continuously. This includes digital clocks (except the old "flip clocks"), computers, TVs and many, many other devices. They have "soft switches" that don't truly turn the AC power on/off, so that a circuit is running all the time that "knows" whether the device should appear to be on or off. Typically, a power outage of more than a second will turn all of these devices "off", so that when power returns they come back to a default state - typically "appear off" but in some cases "appear on" (e.g., many computers have a setting to automatically turn on after power is restored - crucial for servers, security systems, etc.) and in some cases give a power failure indication (like my Kitchenaid oven).
The big problem is on outages between roughly 1/60 of a second and 1 second. Almost any device can tolerate an outage of 1/60 of a second - one AC cycle. But handling more than that depends on the power supply design. Some devices will ride through several cycles quite easily. Some devices will not. I see this occasionally with failing battery backups (UPS). A UPS is typically designed to switch over to battery power in 1/60 of a second and for any low voltage (perhaps < 100V), not just a full outage. But if the battery has failed then the connected devices get nothing at all until power is restored, and can actually end up worse off than if they simply tried to ride through the outage on their own, particularly if the problem is low voltage rather than a full outage.
End result: If your incoming utility power has some very brief interruptions, you can easily find some devices resetting while other devices act as if nothing ever happened.


How can I eliminate a gap in a refrigerator door gasket? My refrigerator door gasket was torn on the bottom, so I replaced it today. The problem is that much of the new gasket is "squished" - that is, not spread as widely as the old one, so there is a gap between the new gasket and the refrigerator which I did not have with the old gasket. I put the new gasket out in the sun for a couple of hours, hoping that it would open up a bit, but it didn't help. Actually, on the top of the door, the new gasket meets the refrigerator, but on the sides there is a gap starting about half way down, and growing to about a 1/2" gap at the bottom. I took the door off the hinges, hoping to find a way to adjust the hinges, but there are no adjustments. I tried inserting a shim underneath the lower hinge, but that simply widened the gap at the bottom.
Any suggestions? Is it safe to try to bend the door in order to narrow the gap?

Most likely the door is out of alignment, and realigning the door is a required step for many gasket replacements. The screws that hold the gasket in place are also the ones holding the door in alignment. You typically loosen the screws that hold the seal with the exception of the corners, inspect the gap and twist the door until it's properly aligned (by pulling or pushing the top/bottom of the door to close the gap), and then tighten all of the screws, rechecking the alignment as you go.


How to eliminate water in crawlspace I would like to install 4" perforated drain pipe along the footer on the inside of a crawlspace. The bottom of the footer is at the height of the existing crawlspace floor. Should I lay the pipe along the footer? I'm thinking I would have to lay a 2" bed of gravel then the pipe and then raise the height of the floor to the height of the top of the footer? If this seems logical, what would you suggest I use for fill? (gravel/dirt/sand)
i am open to any suggestions to remedy the standing water in the crawlspace.
thank you for your reply !!

Often times the best location to place the drain lines along a footing is on the outside of the building structure. This allows collection of the water before it enters the area under the building. It also allows trenching away from the building toward a drain field so there is a place for the collected water to go.

If you do put the piping inside the footing perimeter you may need to also install a sump pit at the down flow end of the pipes. Then a sump pump is installed to move the water to a drain or to pump it outside and away from the building structure.


Is there space between plaster ceiling lath and joists? Two story, midwestern suburban colonial built in 1947. Gable roof. Plaster walls and ceilings. House faces north, and ceiling joists run north-south direction. I am hearing rodents inside of interior bedroom walls and then running across my ceiling in a diagonal direction, i.e., northwest to southeast. I didn't think there would be any space between the ceiling and the joists that would allow free range movement like that. Am I misunderstanding how it's constructed, or is this a sign of a problem (other than rodents)?

No there is no space between your plaster/wall and the joist.  However, old house walls were sometimes constructed without a top plate or bottom plate so it would be no problem for a rodent in your wall to get to the attic and run around.


Does the cloth jacket on my wiring contain asbestos? I grabbed this photo from another Q&A of the same wiring in my house.  It is labelled Diamond DTX NM 600V.  It looks like cloth wrapped wiring.  Does anyone know anything about asbestos with it?  I could not easily find this information myself.

This cloth covered wire is very common and not an asbestos product. With that said in some cases where ceiling were sprayed with popcorn texture or the wire pulled through an area with asbestos the cloth holds onto the fibers. We tested some for a owner that wanted everything tested and did get a positive on one or 2 sections but the insulation on the wires and the cloth itself are not asbestos.


What type and size conduit should I use for my service entrance cable? I am running my aluminum service entrance cable from the main panel to a sub panel in my garage. It runs from the garage under the house then out the wall, makes a 90 degree turn to go into my side of the main box. I cannot find the code that says what kind of conduit it should be in when making the transition to outside and into the box. Any suggestions?

How deep do you go? You can give metal Rigid (/RMC) or IMC conduit only 6" of cover.    Other conduit needs 18" of cover.   If you want to direct bury, you need 24" of cover.

Since you are downstream of a main panel that presumably serves other loads, this is not service wire, this is feeder, and needs to be sized as feeder not service conductors.  You need to run separate neutral and ground wires, unless you are running in IMC or Rigid conduit, in which case you are allowed to use the conduit shell as the ground wire.

Don't run cable in conduit, that is the mark of the amateur.  It is also a very, very hard job.   Either direct bury at 24" or use THWN-2 wires instead of cable.


what is this load center amperage total? Yesterday I took a picture but forgot to took the info plate for amperage rating on it.

My main question: Is there a way to calculate the total amperage that load center currently has?

Extra question: Can you also  calculate the amperage rating by looking at it also?

Thanks in advance.

In a case like this the easiest way to gauge service size is simply looking at the main breaker. Keep in mind, every part of the service; riser, meter pan, entrance cable, etc...must be sized and rated for the service size.

In this case it looks like a 200A service. What you have there is a 200A, 20/40 main breaker panel. 20 full size spaces that can all accept twin, or tandem, breakers.

Not sure what you mean by what amperage the service "has". You can tell the service size like I explained, and you can tell what the load is at one pin pint in time by using a clamp-on amp meter.

You can tell what the calculated load is by doing a load calculation on your home, although this is not an accurate number of actual draw. Here is one example: http://www.nojolt.com/load_calculations.shtml
You can do a web search for lots of info on load calculations.

Bear in mind, adding up the breakers in the panel is a completely meaningless number and will NOT give any kind of assessment of load. It is not uncommon to see 600-800 amps worth of breakers in a 200A panel.


Do I have to bury PVC pipe if used outdoors? I will be installing a hose spigot in a lower patio area that, till now, has had to have several lengths of hose to provide water for some potted plants.  There is an existing spigot on a 3/4" copper pipe on the other side of the house a good 65-80' depending on the route I choose to take.  I plan to tee off of it and then it will go one of two routes to the lower patio.

Digging a trench may not be an option due to rock and trees in the way so, it may be exposed to sun light, which would be a good reason to go copper but that could (will) get costly and be a lot more laborious then PVC.

If I do go the PVC route should I use the same diameter pipe as the copper service? Do I have to bury it? If I can't bury it, what are my options?

PVC does not need to be buried, however the advantages are:

Protection from impact breakage (schedule 40 PVC is relatively brittle and can break easily).
Protection from UV light (PVC like most plastics is affected by UV, this can be overcome by painting the pipe).
Protection from freezing, if buried below the frost line.

As for pipe size, it depends on the size of hose spigot you use. It will most likely be 1/2" or 3/4" (some come with both sizes). When dealing with different materials, use the same nominal pipe size (3/4" copper = 3/4" PVC).

Personally, I would look at using PEX pipe and bury where possible. The exposed pipe will be less susceptible to breakage than PVC. Also due to its flexibility, you can run it without the need for additional fittings. If you don't have PEX crimpers, you can use Sharkbite push-on fittings (the same fittings can be used to transition from copper to PEX).


Can I go with higher CFM for bathroom ventilation fan? I need to replace my bathroom ventilation fan. I am in 2nd floor condominium. My bathroom dimensions are 60 square feet and ceiling height is 8'2".
As per formula I found for CFM (height × length × width × 0.13) ,I need fan with around 62.4 CFM.
I can only find 50 and 80 CFM fans, can't find anything between. Should I go with 80 CFM fan ? There is around 10' to 12' of duct work before it opens outside on the wall.
I have attached picture of the flexible white duct which is connected to solid metal duct as you can see in the far end of the picture.
Can I replace  flexible duct with solid duct to get more smooth air flow ?
Do I need to buy insulated duct ?
My building  is around 34 years old. Not sure if there are specific code requirements for my case.

You can certainly go with an 80 cfm unit, the only drawback being additional noise (in general the more powerful the unit the louder they are). This can be remedied by using a high-quality unit designed to be quieter.
You certainly can (and should IMO) use regular duct pipe in lieu of flex, wherever you can.
I don't think you need insulated duct for this. I live and work in a temperate region and am unfamiliar with considerations for vents in unconditioned spaces that could drop below freezing, but the fact that the existing vent is not insulated is a hint that it should be fine.


Can I replace a Maximum Bulb Wattage (Watts) 25 halogen light bulb with 5w LED light bulb? Is it safe? I purchased 2 of these for 185sf walk in closet.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kichler-Krystal-Ice-11-75-in-W-Chrome-Flush-Mount-Light/50355990
specs say that Max bulb wattage is 25 and come with halogen light bulbs. I replaced with 3w daylight white LED bulbs based on 25w number. The room is too dim. according to specs it is 230 lumens per bulb. each light has 4. 230lmnx4 lights x2 fixtures=1840lumens.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07H2XVDRN/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I previously had 2 100w incandescent light there and it was almost bright enough. My guess is that some light is reflected toward the ceiling and that takes away from the usable light. By my calculation this was equivalent to 3200 lumens.

I tried to calculate how many lumens I would need in this room and come up with 30lmnx185sf=5500-6500lmn. 30 is based on what I read on the Internet.

Is it safe for me to replace these with 5w or even 7w LED daylight white 6000k?

I would appreciate an easy to understand answer for someone who is just an amateur, not electrically proficient.

Thank you

When choosing lamps, as long as the actual wattage is below the rating of the fixture, you're safe.  It doesn't matter that the fixture generates a lot of light with the watts it consumes.

The equivalent wattage they talk about, like where they say this 3W LED has light output equivalent to a 15W halogen, doesn't matter when selecting lamps for a fixture.  The 3W actual wattage determines how much heat it may generate, not the 15W equivalent light output.

In fact it's likely that the LED is more efficient, with less of the electricity consumed turning into heat and more into light, but you can't count on that.  Just go by the actual wattage.


How to repair wall next to external door? I did some repairs a while back, replacing a damaged door jamb.

That repair left some damage to the neighboring wall, as shown in the photos below.
I am getting a new pre-hung door soon, and want to repair the wall before the door is installed. Is this as straightforward as spackle->sand->paint, or is there more involved that I don't know? The wall is plaster by the way.

From what I can see in those images, I wouldn't bother repairing that drywall until the new door is in. Sometimes hanging/fitting a door requires a lot of work to get it plumb, straight, and level, and that may cause you to damage what you just repaired.

Once the new door is installed, you can see how the wall will need to be repaired relative to the new jambs. 95% of the time you'd just cover something like that with the trim and be done with it- no mudding or sanding needed, and only repairing if you have a gap or crack beyond what the trim covers.


Should I install a floor drain in my laundry room? I am relocating my laundry to a room over my garage.  I have an opportunity to put in a floor drain.  My old laundry has a floor drain (not sure why -- it is carpet and subfloor with only crawlspace below).  Putting in the new drain will not be easy.  It requires finding space for the trap and crossing a couple of 2x10 joists (12-OC) with 2 inch pipe.  I do not intend to slope the floor towards the drain, but do intend to have Marmoleum or vinyl flooring.  Again, it is only garage/shop below.  So at worst I would lose drywall and insulation and maybe some tools(!).  My previous home did not have a drain in the laundry room, but drains/pans seem to be common practice these days?

Consider that a typical washing machine holds roughly 40 gallons of water. Now imagine that all gushing out onto the floor at the same time. I've never seen this happen because of a washing machine failure, but I have seen it happen when the drain line from the washing machine pulled out and it wasn't a very pretty sight. If you have the opportunity to put in a floor drain, I'd do it - it doesn't add much work, but certainly beats ripping out a garage ceiling to replace wet drywall and insulation.


Is there a good way to lay out a right angle? Today we set up batter boards and put out marking strings to prepare for constructing a round deck.

We wanted 2 strings that marked the center lines, crossing each other at 90 degrees. We set up batter boards and ran strings between them. Then we measured out a 3/4/5 triangle from the crossing. We looked at the error, adjusted the strings, and repeated until we thought it was good enough.

The strings were not at the same height, so measuring the crossing was tricky. Measuring against the middle of the string is hard, because the string moves so easily.

Each time we adjusted the strings, the crossing point moved, so we had to measure all 3 legs of the triangle each time. If you get measure the hypotenuse and find it's off by some distance d, you have to move the ends of the string by some value that's larger than d, but you don't know how far. You just have to adjust, measure, and repeat.

In this case, the deck is 30' diameter. We started with legs of 6'/8'/10', then realized we had enough room for 12'/16'/20'.

If I was in my workshop building with wood, I would use a carpenter's square or factory corner of a piece of plywood, but at this scale that doesn't work.

I get that 3/4/5 is a good way of checking a right angle, but it's a painful way to create one. Is there a good way to create a right angle with strings, getting it right the first time?

Step #1: Finding the center.

Never built a round deck before, but to find out where you want to put the deck, and to mark the center point, I would drive a stake or nail, tie a string to it that is as long as the desired diameter (30' here), and then walk in a circle with it, keeping it taut, and putting some long nails into the ground, at the end of the string, every 3' or so.  Then I'd put a string around all of those nails, wrapping it around each nail a few times.  Alternatively, if you are working on concrete, clean it up and use chalk instead of the nails & strings for the outside.

Step #2: Dividing the circle into quadrants.

Take the string that is attached to the center stake to the edge of the circle and drive a nail/stake there.  (On concrete, just make a mark and get someone to hold it there.)  Attach a second string to that nail and walk to the opposite side of the circle.  PS: The reason you're using the center string here is to MAKE SURE that each mark is 30' from the center, otherwise the math will fall apart.
Once at the other side of the circle, I would drive another nail/stake, making sure that the string going across the entire circle was both (1) taut and (2) passing directly over the circle.  For reference in the next step, we will call these two points Outside Point #1 and #2 (OP1 and OP2.)  If you're on concrete, you can pop a chalk line at this point.
Then, I would use some math.  Dividing the circle into quadrants would require 4 points on the outside of the circle that (of which we currently only have 2), if you were to draw lines in between all of them, would form four right triangles (with the right angle in the center, which is what you're asking for.)  Knowing that each leg of each right triangle needs to be 30', the hypotenuse of each triangle must be 42' 5 (1/8)" -long (square root of 30^2 + 30^2).  Armed with a string of that length, I would attach it to both of nails/stakes/marked points from above, OP1 and OP2, and I would walk to both sides of the circle, near where the other two points, which we'll call OP3 & 4, should be.  Make marks where the end of this string crosses over the outside of the circle (to be exact, you should once again have the 30' center string in your hand.)  See diagram below.  For OP3, make this measurement from both OP1 and OP2, and for OP4, make the measurement once again from both OP1 and OP2.  You should have two marks at both the OP3 and OP4 locations, and they should be so close (within 1") that you can just eyeball an average of them.  Drive a nail at those locations, and draw a taut string from OP3 to OP4, making sure it passes over the center.  Once again, if you're on concrete, pop a chalk line.

I'd imagine that this is the most accurate method outside of buying survey equipment.  Good luck!

(Note: Unfortunately, as you swing a string around a nail/stake, it will shorten in length.  If you decide to trace out the entire outside of the circle, your distance from the center will decrease as you go.  Tying a loop in the string, allowing it to rotate around the nail/stake will prevent this.)


How is installing roof sheathing horizontally stronger than vertically? Prompted by a comment in this answer:

What is better for a roof, plywood or OSB?

Why is it stronger to install roof sheathing horizontally?  Yes, it ties in more rafters, but in what manner is that stronger?

The same policy goes for roof sheathing as for hanging drywall, you get more strength by spanning more rafters/joists/studs and offsetting the joints. This solves two points of weakness.

The main one is the structure turning into a parallelogram where the studs are no longer perpendicular to the ground. When you think of using a diagonal brace to support a wall, you want to get both ends as far apart as possible. If you install vertical, then that gives you the support of a diagonal brace spanning 4' worth of studs. But by staggering the joints and going horizontal, you get the equivalent 12' or more of studs braced.

The other form of support you get is for vertical load on a roof segment. If you stand between two rafters and the sheathing was laid vertically, you are closer to a seam where the nails could pull away under load and you can fall through. Holmes on Homes had an episode where they were replacing a leaking roof and the builder laid a patch where the owner decided not to go with the skylight option. The patch was laid vertically, and they almost fell right through the roof.


How do I clean the oven really well? I need to clean my kitchen's oven really well. It is electric, has a "grill" element on top, and a fan behind a grating which, apparently, cannot be removed. I tried with the spray products for ovens but I cannot reach every part of it, and I always have the sensation that I'm not cleaning, I'm just detaching oil but even after removing it with paper and cleaning more with alcohol, the oven stays oily anyway.

Do you have any hint on how to clean it as close as brand new, and what are the precautions to keep (if any) in order not to ruin the grill element ?

Don't use alcohol to clean an oven.
If your oven has a "self cleaning" mode, try that.  It basically puts the oven on full blast (2-3x the normal baking temperature) and "burns" all of the crud out.  Sometimes there will be some charred stuff behind that you have to wipe out after it is done (see #3).  Because of the extreme temperatures involved, there is usually a safety latch on the oven door to lock out the self cleaning mode.
Use oven cleaning spray.  Easy-Off is the most popular example of this.  You spray it on, wait a few hours, and then wipe it out with a damp sponge (follow the instructions).  All of the crud in your oven will turn into a brown sludge that just wipes away.  Be warned, oven cleaners are extremely caustic.  Use rubber gloves, and don't rub your eyes while you are working.  The fumes are nasty too.  They have newer low-odor ones, but they can still make you gag.

Option #3 will make your oven look shiny and clean.  However, it takes a lot of manual labor to get it looking good.  Might take more than one cleaning session.


What is this black device on the wall of the furnace/boiler room? I've seen these in various places in the past and I'm wondering if anyone knows what the function of it is. There appear to be large resistors along the sides of the device and an odd round knob in the middle.

If you are in the U.S.A. I would say it is a termination point for you landline phone.


Do I have to GFCI protect a range plug if it's within 6 feet of a sink? I am installing a range plug within 6 feet of a sink, do I need a GFCI?

I do not have a 2014 NEC code book so I don't know if the code has changed. It has not been required in the past but things can change.

No in any case.

Electric range circuits and receptacles do not require GFI protection, and if this is a regular receptacle for a gas range it is behind the range and not serving the counter, so again ,no GFI required.


Toilet is leaking around the base Last Wednesday, my toilet experienced a small leak around the base. I monitored it for a few days and I didn't see the leak again. Today, the toilet leaked around the base again. This time, there was a lot of water on the floor. I cleaned up the area and have flushed several times since I noticed the leak and it's not leaking. What could this be?

Check your water supply connections and tighten them as needed, first.

After that, I would suspect and just plan on replacing the toilet's seal, either wax or wax-free are perfectly fine. This, is actually fairly easy and quick to do.

Sound like a leap? Well, doing so may reveal the seal to be the actual problem, but also force you to assess the entire toilet in wrestling it.

If you have a 2-piece toilet, the leak could be coming from failing bolt washers in the bottom of the tank or a failing tank to bowl gasket under the tank. Is your tank loose and wobbly? A good chance that the water's coming from the tank connections that need to be tightened.

A final item is the fill valve and even specifically the bowl filling tube. The valve may be spraying the tank lid or the bowl filler may have come loose and is spraying the lid.

Like above, water may be finding the toilet's exterior and just running down to the base periodically.


Whats more efficient for AC and Blower Fan, lower temperature/fan auto or higher temperature fan on? This summer i want to be more efficient and save money on my AC usage because I can remember last year it was an disaster. For example, on a typical 100 degree day, the highest the temperature would read on the thermostat is about 85-86 degree around 5pm without any AC, all windows and shades closed. Last summer I set my thermostat to 81 degree and the AC will kick on right about 3pm when temp start to go above 81 degree. And then every 15 to 30 min. or so, the AC and fan will constantly turn on and off. I usually run AC for 4 hours from 3-7, then we open all windows around 8pm when nightfall.

Below are the options I can think of, which one is more efficient and cost effective?

Set the thermostat at 81 degree and keep fan on for four hours.
Set the thermostat at 79 degree and fan auto for 3 hours.
Set the thermostat at 78 degree and fan on for 1 hour then wait another hour and turn AC back on fan on for another 1hour.

My system is Lennox G16 Q3-50 Furnace and I think a 1.5 ton ac outside.

Whatever you do, use the blower fan on auto only. The blower fan is ineffective for circulation compared to ceiling fans or to fans on stands or to box fans. If your ducts are in a hot attic, circulating air will pick up heat through the relatively thin insulation of the ducts. If your ducts are in the crawl space
of a pier-and-beam foundation, then maybe using the blower on for circulation might do some good.

I am well into my 70s and can't stand being hot so my recommendation is to set the thermostat at 78 F and leave it there. We keep ours at 74 F and just pay what it costs. If you have standard thickness filters, change the filter once a month or two months at most. Let everyone (including the dog) enjoy life at a civilized temperature and humidity.

Where are you? What was your monthly kWh last summer, say for July?

Edit
Our electric power use kWh (so you can judge the validity of my answer on your question) for two retired people who stay home a lot and don't travel much, share one automobile (~one tank of gas per month), electric kitchen range (never eat out), electric clothes dryer, gas water heater.

2016 electric power use kWh
Mar 500
Apr 500
May 700
Jun 1000
Jul 1700
Aug 1950
Sep 1500
Oct 1000
Nov 700
Dec 600
2017
Jan 750 (space heating of garage for painting)
Feb 500
Mar 500


Replace fluorescent lights with LED lights Can I replace fluorescent lights (30W, 36" long - F30T12 H998) with LED lights?

I searched f30t12 LED replacement, the first lamp that came up is a 3’ t8 lamp 13w 5000k for $6.88. These are plug-and-play, you swap the t8 lamp in and they work with the ballast. (A t12 lamp and t8 lamp use the same size tombstone)  So yes there is an easy one and there may be direct wire out there that bypasses the ballast, but 3’ lamps are less common so there may not be as many choices but these did state 120-277v. I just did not look further, the vendor was 1000bulbs.Com I use them for some of my lighting, and I like DLC certified lamps as these have a 5 year warranty.


Remove 3-way switch from a 4-way circuit? From what I can tell, I basically have the same setup as this illustration.
What I'd like to do is remove the 3-way switch on the right completely, leaving only the 3-way and 4-way switches on the left.

To eliminate a 3-way switch, simply connect the feed wire to either one of the traveler wires, using a wirenut or similar approved connection device. Isolate the other traveler wire by capping it with a wirenut. You can identify the feed wire as it will connect to one side of the switch and the traveler wires will be on the other side. If you are not sure, in this case, it is safe to experiment: interconnect any two of the non-ground wires and isolate the other. If the circuit doesn't work, switch the isolated wire with either one of the others.
You noted that you will be replacing the switch with a switch for another circuit. One thing to watch out for is box fill. The new wires may possibly exceed the allowed fill. I'll leave it to a pro to expand on this.
Also, you may be aware of this already, but make sure to turn off the breaker for the circuit and test the wires for voltage before starting.


Can I use three-conductor #2 cable for a 100A subpanel if I add ground rod at the subpanel? We purchased three-conductor 2awg cable. It has 2 insulated wires surrounded by a neutral/ground. This cost $150, and since it was bought by the foot, I don't believe we can return it.

Can we still use this to run the subpanel, using the the 3 wires as L1 and L2 and neutral, and running the ground to existing grounding rods outside that building from the panel?

Just get the correct stuff and run it -- anything else you do's going to be a way bigger pain in the arse

Since you (presumably) have not put the wrong cable in the ground yet, your best bet is to simply get the correct cable (one with 3 insulated wires and bare ground) and run it.  If you can't return the incorrectly purchased cable, just toss it in with the next load going to the metal scrapper in your area -- you'll at least get a little bit of money back for it that way.


How does a roof replacement impact recommended timing of solar panel installation? I just found out that I should replace my (currently asphalt shingle) roof in the next year. I am also interested in evaluating the feasibility of installing photovoltaic and/or solar hot water panels. So I am wondering if it makes sense to look at the timing of these projects in tandem. Is there a reduced risk to having leaks, etc. if I get any panels installed near the same time as replacing the roof?

You certainly don't want to install the solar panels before redoing the roof. Outside of that obvious point, I don't think it matters much. In Theory, having the panel supports installed as part of the process of redoing the roofing could make things simpler and better sealed, but in practice there are very few, if any, teams trained to coordinate these tasks.


Ceiling rose light replacement Would love your advice on connecting a new light to the existing wiring on our ceiling light please! It’s a lot more wiring than I’ve seen on other images. And certainly more connections than the Neutral, Live and Earth one on the new fitting.

Neutral's on the far left, Switched Live is on the far right, Earth is at the bottom
Looking at your ceiling rose and the mixture of old-UK and IEC color coding present there, we can tell from the combination of two blacks and a blue going into the far left block that it's the Neutral (Return) side of this ceiling rose.  Given that we know the fixture can't be connected to the Always Live (because the switch works), that puts the Always Live in the center, with the blue wire connected to the Always Live being a hot feed down to the switch, which was wired using plain IEC-coded T&E (brown, blue, green/yellow), so you'll want to take that blue wire off the always hot block and sleeve it with a piece of brown or black tubing, then put it back where it came from.  Finally, the Live wire on your new fixture goes to the Switched Live block on the far right, which has the brown wire from the switch loop and a yellow onward switched-live going into it.
The earth wire of the fixture, of course, joins with the rest of the earths at the bottom of your picture.  Once that's done, you can button things up, turn the breaker back on, and enjoy your new light!  P.S. you probably should have an electrician look at this wiring at some point, as that blue wire joining in with the earths is rather odd, to say the least.


How to seal an aquastat sensor well? My heating system has a tankless boiler which feeds an external tank. The tank temperature is measured using a probe inserted into a standard aquastat well.

The probe is considerably smaller than the well diameter. It is supposed to be filled with thermal grease to aid conductivity. But how to effectively keep the sensor in the well? The well doesn't have any sort of cap or fitting to close off the open end.

I could obviously just tape it but I'd like to find something more permanent than that. Tapes often dry out. I'd thought of heat-shrink tubing but I think the difference in size from the small wire to the large metal tube is too much.

Well with probe inserted:

Well and probe itself:

I would use some silicone sealer; not a lot, but enough to stick the cable to the well. I do this on heater blocks for electric valves: when the heat rod fails, the silicone is easily removed. Your temperature probe would work the same.


What is more effective - mold control spray or the fogger? Concrobium sells mold control spray and the fogger. Which one has more lasting effect on the mold? Does the $135 cost of fogger justify the effect it has on the mold?

Properly applied spray is demonstrably more effective than fogging.

That being said, neither are good for use on the substrates where mold is often worst: wood and drywall.

In any case, the most effective means of addressing mold is physical removal and cleaning.