Why is my Lennox g40uh series furnace not turning on?

Sounds like you have most of the common bases covered.  This happened to me and it was the blocked inlet valve, a leaf had gotten sucked in.  It took me a while to find it, it was not in the visible area of the inlet, it was stuck on a screen to catch debris.  I would double check that.  Maybe try to blow some air in the inlet from the outside of the house and see if you feel the movement in the furnace.

This question is similar and may have some other suggestions.


Kitchen faucet twisted to the left for hot water

Chances are your facuet just moved. Under the sink, locate the nut that holds the faucet to the sink and loosen it. The nut should either be a large one with all the other hoses going through it or a small one on the same pipe that the sprayer connects to (if it's this design, be sure to losen the top nut and not the sprayer connection). Once loosened, adjust the faucet on the top so that the valve moves equal distance to the left and right and then retighten the nut.


How safe are electric faucet water heater?

I would consider them unsafe for the U.S. market for 2 possibly 3 reasons. First it is not U.L. listed this means it has not passed normal testing for being used in the U.S.
Next, it comes with a different style plug so the first thing you would do to use it is modify it electrically so you could use it.
Another item is it has metric plumbing, this may not be a big safety thing but you may have trouble adapting this to your parents plumbing. If a failure it may just leak or flood an area of the home.
With these issues I would check a plumbing store or big box store they may have something similar that probably will cost more but would be listed for use here thus be legal. I was thinking the country plugs this comes with are on a different standard than we are so I found the voltage is 220 so you will probably need that brought to the location as most outlets in North America are 120v.


How do I remove or cut a sewer pipe at edge of our basement slab?

You are thinking about this way too much.  If you aren't using it anymore and the concrete is coming up the people doing the french drains won't think twice about taking care of it for you (for free) if they are reputable.  It is literally one whack with a sledge hammer that they will have available.  There is no use sawing through it or whatever if it is going bye bye.  They will simply remove it as they would the concrete around it.  Cast iron doesn't do well with a hammer.  The PVC on the other side can be cut with any kind of saw.


How to improve wooden joists without removing them

My answer over here is probably better suited to your question than it was there. But that was about sistering, you're talking about scabbing (the other answers there may also be helpful).

What you are talking about doing is scabbing. Sistering is adding the same dimension board for the full length of the joist. Scabbing is acceptable for individual random joist repairs. It would not be acceptable if all 9 are consecutive joists. Scabbing should be done with the same dimension lumber extended 4' past the affected area. Then it should be BOLTED with 1/2 min. diameter lag bolts in a zig-zag pattern to eliminate shear cracks from forming. –oldhouseweb.com

There is no hard and fast rule on scabbing that I've found. The "acceptable" recommendation above is the opinion of that poster. Done correctly there should be no problem, IMO.

30+ yrs as a carpenter and don't know of any real rule of thumb. Call-out varies with severity of notching, joist size and span. I'd recommend qualified contractor or SE and let it go at that.
[scabbing] is installed which extends either 4' beyond the damaged section (or to a bearing point) or 1/3 the length of the framing member plus the length of the damaged section. –homeinspectionforum.net

That seems to be about it for recommendations on scabbing (they may be citing code, but I couldn't find it).
I might do one 2-by-X on each side before I had to match those four-by's. Either way, do a new load calculation and over estimate it: those old joists are now less than helpful. The lag screws I linked to in my other answer are nice (but you need a real impact driver to sink them) but if you go with 4-by's, you'll probably need bolts anyway. And since you're scabbing instead of sistering, I think bolts are in order, at least at the ends.
As for a fastening schedule, other than that sisters need two every 16" max, I'm at a loss. But here's a nice staggered pattern, with notes about distances from the edge, etc. (just ignore that it's a splice). Use four bolts like that at each end, and for simplicity, tack the rest of the old joist up to it with those screws. Again, be aware you'll need a serious impact driver for them or you'll be drilling holes just like for bolts anyway.
The only thing those old joists are going to be doing when you're done is hanging that ceiling.


Attaching second layer of drywall -- is there something I can do to ensure it doesn't ruin the base drywall if I have to remove it eventually?

Any method you choose is going to affect the existing drywall. Patching small holes in drywall is simple and easy but patching dozens of holes is more work than patching just a few.
If you use drywall you will have to use dozens of screws to attach it to the existing wall.  If you use a more rigid base then you can get away with just  a few fastener points.
Use 3/8" or 1/2" plywood and attach  horizontal rows of screws into the studs near the top, in the middle and near the bottom.  You will want to place your screws so they are accessible, between slats or under slats that will be removable, in order to access them when it comes time to remove the wall.
When the time comes you unscrew slat wall and take it with you to you your new castle. You can do it in section if you like, Studs are 16" on center so if you do not want a 48" wide (4x8 plywood) you could cut them so they fall on the studs. I.E. 16", 32" etc. A stud finder will help to find a stud to use as a reference to measure from for the others.
Note. Sometimes studs are spaced farther or closer for various reasons so map out all of your studs before hand and design your panels accordingly.


It's a ladder jack. The square brackets go on the legs of an extension ladder and the hook goes over a higher rung. You can hang a staging plank between two ladders in the resulting triangle, which is why you have a pair of them.

The drawing below is backwards, but representative of the general idea. The jacks would normally be hung under the ladder so the plank is close to the building.


Try alkyd (oil-based) paint. Yes, paint. If the tile off white and if you have a scrap somewhere, take it to a paint store and they can sell you a match. The crack will disappear or only you will know.


What is the proper order in framing the basement walls?

The only reason not to frame everything up would be logistics. If it would be hard to get the bathtub or drywall into the basement because of a framed wall in the way. Cost could be another factor. You would be staggering your project in a possibly inconvenient manner. It may also require extra sets of permits and inspections from the local gov't due to the fact that you'll be framing essentially twice.


Does code allow for in-wall mounting of low voltage transformers?

By the way, 55W heat dissipation is not allowed inside a 1-gang box.  The 55W restriction is not about that, it's about something else.  Other than that...

Nothing in Code prohibits this

But I'm not aware of any products that offer this in 12 volts DC.  The lingua franca of low-voltage wiring in the US is 24 volts AC, and always has been.  They certainly do make that in a "junction box cover" form-factor; however it's pretty industrial looking since it's made for installation in unimproved spaces, and the low voltage side (and often the whole transformer) sits on the outside of the box.

In any case, any such product should include the necessary dividers, to keep low voltage and mains rigidly separate.  LV and mains are allowed in the same multi-gang junction box if a divider is physically installed.

I'm concerned that such a thing might not exist.  Fitting inside a gang-box, it definitely has to be UL-listed. Going through the UL listing process may be too onerous for a niche product with a limited market.


Is a 12-in diameter tree stable enough to support a tree house?

As requested, The reddish color makes me want to ask if it is madrone, does it shed it’s bark? ,Are the leaves mid size thick or leathery and almost feel waxy? If this is what it is I would not use it for support. Madrone is very hard and cracks and splits easily, it is a large one but I would verify the type before trying to use as it might work for now but the next storm in the PNW and the tree may break apart.


That looks like a cut off T-post (fence post), and IMHO it is a significant hazard, especially to kids and dogs. If a dog steps on it wrong it could slash a foot to the bone.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/T-Post-Post/4758566

If you have a high lift jack or T-post puller you could probably wrap a chain around the post and pull it out. Otherwise just dig it out. Usually these are driven it no more than 1 ft or 18". Usually they have a stabilizing plate parallel to the top of the T cross section.


How should I fix blemishes in a stained particle board table top?

It would help to know exactly what you want to accomplish because there's likely a better finishing method than stain in your situation. A good first step is a paste wood filler to smooth out the surface imperfections. You may need to shop around a bit or online, and it's helpful to decide on a finish first.

Paint is the easiest solution, any you have some flexibility with sheen and texture if you open your options to chalk and milk paint. That being said, many people don't care for painted furniture and "stain" is often a code word for wanting a clear topcoat which is problematic with paint.

Lacquer is much more common than paint for factory finishes. It's not brush friendly but you can buy it in spray cans. On its own you'll get a durable fingernail polish type of finish, while preserving the option of adding a clear lacquer topcoat.

For problem pieces a gel stain is a much better option than stain conditioner. They're thicker than conventional stains so they don't absorb unequally. The advantage for you would be the ability to apply polyurethane as a topcoat. It's also much more rag and brush friendly than lacquer.


What is the industry term for house wiring diagrams?

The correct term is an Electrical Plan. I used Smart Draw when I remodeled my home. It's a great tool and there are several templates you can choose from to begin editing. Its pretty cheap to use.


I would not be overly concerned about this unless it was the highest point in your plumbing or if you had low water pressure from the water supply (or if you are on well water).
These couple of inches extra should be flushed with water at all times and recycled with the rest of the water supply.    There is no reason to believe that the water in these small sections would remain stagnant, as they are just way too small to have "standing" water.
If you are concerned I would have the plumber not cap these at all, take out the nearest T and change it for a right angle.
Now there are a TON of benefits to block framing (from the materials I am guessing France or Italy) but plumbing and rerouting the plumbing... no.   We simply don't have many instances in the US like this because the plumbing is easily modified inside 2x construction.


The most common insect that readily makes it's our casa it's casa is the flea. Fleas find an ideal environment in our rugs. They can also go without food for many days. They can lay thousand of eggs in their life-cycle. Whats amazing is that the eggs, once deposited in the naps of a carpet will remain un-hatched until it senses vibration (from humans walking) signaling that dinner has arrived.   To verify that there is an infestation place a white bed sheet on the ground outside. Holding a section of the rug over it shake vigorously for a few seconds. You should now have a clear look at everything that resided in the carpet.  If you are certain the marks are not a skin re-action to a substance on the rug, but was caused by a blood-sucking insect, have a professional insect eradicator access the situation and prescribe a treatment. They are best at knowing what and how to remove the pest that may be residing in your home.


Virtually none. It isn't just about the strength, but the stiffness. It'll flop around like a fresh fish. Take it from someone who has done something similar with 3/4" PVC conduit and found even that lacking when a foot of snow landed on it.


Covered vent under a floating wood floor

Couple ideas come to mind:

Focus near windows, this is the typical location of an HVAC vent. Compare the room with others to find common locations, spacing from the wall, and typical number of vents in the room.
If you believe you have located it, a deep sensing stud finder may identify edges of the vent if you start in the middle.
Try loud sound/music directed into another vent.
Look from below the floor, making a small access hole in the ceiling below where you suspect the vent may be located.
Since the floor is floating, pull the trim and lift up the last few rows. The floor can be put back without any impact, and the trim will just need some caulk, nails, and touch up paint.


What are the dimensions of the steel in the concrete slabs on the upper floors of my house?

It's a piece of metal that sits on top the window sills to either side(10cm) and into the room about 5cm.

I ended up just drilling another hole 2 cm out from the original holes and it wasn't there.

I guess it's something to keep the weight off of the window frame.


Why does Simpson Strong Tie require nails that would protrude beyond the rafter they're penetrating?

They don't.
The table lists rated uplift loads for particular installation scenarios, presumably with the largest nails that offer practical benefit. It doesn't list installation requirements. See footnote #13 for some clarification. It describes loading for alternative fasteners:

Allowable DF/SP/SPF uplift load for the H .2.5A fastened to a 2x4 truss bottom chord and double top plates using (5) 0.131" x 1-1/2" nails in the top plates and (3) 0.131" x 1-1/2" nails in the lowest three flange holes into the truss bottom chord is 260 lb. (160).

There's also a column toward the right side of the table that mentions 1½" nails. You can see that uplift load is substantially less (540) for short nails than it is for long nails (700).
2½" nails are mentioned for those (rare) cases where you have more depth to nail into. In those cases uplift data is important, so it's listed. It may also reflect the highest load rating achievable with that particular part.
You should use 1½" ("teco") nails into the truss chords (or rafters) and longer nails into the wall plates. This is standard practice. I've done so many times myself under inspection situations.


Which parts of a Moentrol transfer valve need to be exposed?

Do not cover over the following items:

Integral Stops (Item 9 on page 2 of the instructions, there are two) These are the isolation valves for the hot and cold connections to the valve. These valves allow you turn off the water to the shower valve to do repair/maintenance without having to turn off the water to the whole house.
Balancing Spool (Item 8 on page 2 of the instructions) This devise prevents temperature fluctuation due to pressure changes to the hot or cold lines, like when a toilet is flushed. It is basically a couple cylinders with small ports that can slide back and forth to maintain the pressure balance between the hot and cold. However, they can become stuck and may need to be cleaned or replaced in time.
Cartridge (Item 3 on page 2 of the instructions) This is what the shower lever will attach to. Again, this may need servicing at some point in the future. Also if you install it incorrectly or if the hot and cold lines are crossed, it can usually be flipped to rectify the problem.
Escutcheon Screw Holes (Item 5 on page 2 of the instructions, there are two) This is where the screws that will hold the escutcheon or trim plate are screwed into.

Page 5 of the instructions you linked to shows that the opening in the wall should be 1/8" larger then the plaster ground face (Item 4 on page two). This opening will be sealed by the escutcheon or trim plate. This will come as part of the trim package. If you provide the model number of the trim package, I provide further information.


What is this white fitting inline with my showerhead?

Probably a charcoal filter. Probably disgusting (people put them in, change the filter a few times, and then get bored of buying the filters, which turn into a gross mess as often as not.) Or the filters become unavailable since these are not exactly a standard item.

I'd strongly suggest removing it; if you want to keep it and can find filters for it, at least take it off and clean it throughly and replace the filter.

Looks like perhaps this one:


Try to add more power outlets to garage! for more toys!

You will be a LOT happier later if you just decide from day 1 to never buy a shop tool that CANNOT be rewired to run off 240.  A 13 amp 120v saw uses 7.5 amps at 240 and the motor runs a lot cooler without all that extra current.  This goes for your dust collector as well.  Also by standardizing on 240 you can buy used commercial tools that are setup for 240 and they will be of better quality and probably cheaper than 120v residential home shop stuff.
With that said you might consider that you will want to use motor start switches (Allen Bradley, Furnas or equivalent) on any motors that do not have thermal limiting on the motor.  These are essentially "breakers" so you don't really need to put a 1 for 1 breaker for each tool.
Yes you can go to the trouble of running EMT all over but I would not do that.  Instead I would replace any of the "crummy" power cords on your tools with the NEMA rubber covered cable that is standard for use in shops.  You can use the #14 guage stuff for your 7amp saw which is not that expensive.  Then build a power distribution system consisting of a series of 240v electrical outlets in steel boxes that are on the ends of NEMA cables going into a central box, kind of like an octopus.  Put an assortment of lengths of cables on the central box.  Then a heavy 10 guage rubber covered cable from that to a single 30 amp outlet going to a 240v breaker.  The reason I would advise doing it this way is that you are NOT going to know the optimal layout of where you want to put your shop tools in the space you have until you buy them and use them for a while.  It is cheaper to run all this off a power distribution built from cables which can easily be moved around the shop as you decide to reorganize your shop tool layout.   Also as an extra trick you can run a 4 wire from the 30A outlet and run the neutral then you can add 120v outlets to the octopus distribution box.  Or if you really want to go big cut into the drywall and mount a nice 50A outlet on a 50A breaker.  Not only will 240 @ 50A provide you with plenty of power, you can pick up a dryer feed cable for cheap out of the bins at Goodwill and use that for your power distribution box.  And it is handy if you ever want to charge an electric car.  And another thing you can often find those "tombstone" Lincoln stick welders for very cheap and those are great welders to use while you are saving up for a decent tig not some Chingtau tig that falls apart.  And you CAN stick weld aluminum.
Once a few years from now your shop layout settles down you can then replace the octopus with EMT and put in 120 and 240 outlets spaced where the final resting place of each tool will be.
Lastly, consider buying an air compressor early on.  Used ones are inexpensive and you can run smaller tools like hand drills and air ratchets off compressed air.  And you will definitely want a compressor for running an HPLV gun and spraying paint, lacquer, etc.  And nobody ever said "dang this air compressor I bought is just too big" so don't get a small one like one of those dumb pancake ones that is only good for running a nailgun.  I have a 20 gallon in my wood shop and a 60 gallon in my garage (in my other house) that I bought for working on cars that is permanently bolted to the floor, wired into 240, and many times over the years I wish I had spent the money for a 2 stage one that could go above 120psi.


Ceiling electrical box wires -trying to install a light fixture

Don't sweat the 3 blacks and 3 whites in the fixture.  Those are so you have the option to power multiple bulbs off different circuits... say you have some circuits on a generator, you can put 1 of the bulbs on the generator-side panel.  All the fixture blacks go together (in fact I would pigtail them on the bench before installing).  All the fixture whites go together (again pigtail those on the bench).

First, DO NOT split up any of the black and white bundles in this setup.  A few months ago we saw someone in almost your identical situation take apart ALL those wires, spread them out, shoot a photo and post it here... and unfortunately this was an older building with cloth covered wires, and colors were indistinguishable.  The poor person knocked out power to a neighbor's flat, and had to fork out $300 to hire the landlord's electrician to put it all back right.

Your building is wired in conduit, and so the electrician was able to do something they usually are unable to do: actually color-coded the wires by function. In your case (only), black is always-hot, white is neutral, and single yellow is switched-hot for the lamp.

Your voltage tester is giving you a bad reading because of "phantom voltage" and a quirk of how voltage testers work.  We can see plain as day that the yellow wire is correctly wired to a switch.  If you install the light and it's really on 24x7, then the only possibility is a defective switch.

I agree with Jasen that you will need to add a white wire to the existing white wires - that's why I say pigtail the lamp whites, so you're only adding 1 wire instead of trying to cram 3 little wires into a nut that already has 3 big ones (not legal and not gonna happen).  Even for 4 wires you will need the larger "red or tan" wire nuts.

Crank down wire nuts Very Hard, and pull test them without tape. If you need tape, don't - that is a bad connection that will start a fire.  Fix your technique.


Can I replace my bathroom's floor tile before replacing the tub?

Sure, but the problem is that you don't know that the new tub will be exactly the same width. Usually flooring is one of the last things completed in a bathroom remodel.

If your current tub is fiberglass (and not cast-iron) you may be able to cut out the lower portion of the face to allow you to run tile underneath for a short distance. You'd then install your new tub above tile level, using filler plywood or whatever.


What can I use to increase the height of my fence?

"Lattice Fence Topper" + Clematis.

This is also a deterrent against intrusion - see example police advice

  Diamond design trellis as a topping to your fence, makes it much harder to gain a hand or foothold.  It is also difficult to climb over (especially if entwined with prickly or thorny climbing shrubs).

Maximum fence height depends on your local authority. In the UK, nothing more than 2m is generally allowed.


Incandescent lightbulbs won't work very well when conected in series using normal mains voltages. At best they will illuminate dimly.

If your current single 75w lightbulb is on a dedicated 15A circuit, that would be surprising. Perhaps it shares a circuit with one or more wall sockets.

For safe/reliable operation you have to be sure that the total load on that circuit does not exceed 15A. So you need to sum the currents that are likely to be concurrently drawn by each of the parallel loads.

You must also connect your new light-fittings using wire of the construction and gauge specified by local codes (you didnt say if you live in Dhaka, Melbourne or Aberdeen). Connection methods and enclosures (junction boxes) also vary by region.

Using LED lightbulbs will enable you to provide your desired higher light output (lumens) without increasing the power used (watts) or, equivalently, current drawn (amps).

Unless you are happy to spend enough time to learn all this, you might be better off hiring an electrician, it might not be expensive if you do the decorative work, making holes for fittings and cable runs, making good and repainting.


How can I test and increase the water pressure in my apartment?

I don't know if there is an absolute minimum for your area. A pressure gauge can be installed on a kitchen faucet with a adapter to quickly check the pressure.

A few years back a family needed 120 psi for their child's medical needs. I installed a check valve on the main line and then a small booster pump and pressure tank. It was a small pump; I think it was 7gallons per minute. This provided both the pressure and flow they needed. The total cost was close to 1k for the pump tank and install. I also set it up so they could take it with them when they moved.

We had to replace several older valves that leaked due to the high pressure. Their original pressure from the city supply was just under 60. You need to be aware of the possibility of leaks with a pressure increase but you probably won't need such a high pressure.

Also we measured the flow afterwards and had much more than the pump was rated for, probably because the supply pressure to the pump was rated for a shallow well so you may not need as high a flow pump as your total demand.


Tiny leak in soldered copper 1/2" pipe joint

If you can drain the pipe (heating it with water in it is mostly an exercise in futility), then yes, you could try heating it and adding more solder in place. (Which, contrary to your assertion, is not an especially bad idea.)

If not, and you really don't have space to move things, usual practice would be to cut it out and install a "detour" loop -- two L's to bring it out of the plane of the existing pipe, two more L's with a piece of pipe between them to bridge the gap, and two more short pieces of pipe to connect the L's in the old pipe to L's in the new pipe. That gives you the play in the system that you need to bring things together, by letting you make the final connection at right angles to the old pipe. (Of course the downside of this approach is that you have to make eight good soldered connections, not just two, and it costs you a bit more for the extra pipe.)

       _____
 _____|     |_____


I agree, it's very puzzling that your entire house would lose water pressure after replacing a shower faucet. I'm putting this in as an answer instead of a comment so I can include a picture of the pressure regulating valve (PRV) so at least you know what you're looking for. It should be on the main line, usually after the meter and before any lines branch off.
It's possible that corrosion could be restricting the flow of water into your house which could result in a drop in pressure when more than one faucet/shower is operating. You might check with your water supplier to have then check pressure at the curb compared to the 80 psi you're seeing at the gauge. Typically pressure is 120 to 140 psi at the curb and your PRV should be bringing it down to 60 to 75 psi.


Replacing a 120 Volt Air Conditioner plug

This is not a GFCI plug, it is an LCDI plug. The copper pigtail 4th wire is a dead giveaway.

The bare wire is a mesh that surrounds the hot and neutral wire. The circuit detects if there is a Leakage Current between the hot and neutral wires and the surrounding mesh, which would indicate a damaged cable. The purpose of this is to prevent a fire hazard. Because the AC pulls a lot of current, a damaged cable can get hot and start an electrical fire. (The internal insulator can be damaged with no visible exterior damage.)

No one really sells replacement LCFD plugs, because (in theory) the design of the cabling requires differently rated current detection circuits.

But you can buy a new LCDI cable from Amazon or maybe a local HVAC shop. Just make sure it's rated for the sufficient wattage. (Almost all will be, but you never know.) You will have to remove the casing from the AC unit to connect the leads internally, which is a bit more hassle than working with a cable. But worth it to prevent a fire!

However, the unit will still work if you tape off the outer mesh wire, and connect the hot, neutral, and ground to a regular GFCI replacement you can get at any hardware store. You will gain shock protection, but lose fire protection, since most of these LCDI plugs don't include GFCI, though some models might. (I wouldn't recommend this, though, don't know if your insurance would cover a fire if it started one. It might be okay as a short-term solution until you can order a new cable if you are burning up and need to cool right away.)

Might be best to remove your defective cable first, so you can visually check if the leads on a replacement will be compatible (sufficient length, compatible fasteners, etc.)


I was able to find this site: http://www.czjinhe.com/english/content/product5.htm

Which show some information about your switch and might sell it. I used this query with google: zhongling pa66 xk-2 switch


How to get a "wide" shim instead of a long shim

Larger shims I usually just cut to fit from plywood.   The layers in the plywood allow you to change the depth pretty easy by chiseling and just lifting the layer up until you want it to end.


Some dimmers use the ground to trickle a small amount of current for normal operation. If yours is working without it connected, I would say it doesn't fall into this category (although you could provide the model name/number to be certain).

Most likely the ground connection is there simply because all residential switches, receptacles, etc. require a ground these days.

It sounds like a ground wire is available in your switch box, but it is going to your fan's switch. No, you cannot double-tap the ground screw on your other switch. You need to use some form of wire connector to make what is called a pigtail to connect the ground from each switch to your ground wire in your switch box.

Illustration of the pigtailing concept


My first thought is that the sensor has debris on the outside, or - if there is a protective cover on the sensor - has built up a film on the inside of the cover.  Try cleaning it well outside, then see if you can remove the cover to clean the back side.

My 2nd thought is that I've often found finicky electrical problems to be caused by a loose wire or bad solder joint.  You might turn off the power, open the case up, and look for loose/broken wiring or cracked solder joints on the circuit board.  This would fit with your description of the problem - they quit working after they have run for a while, and don't reset until the next day (when they would be cooled off).  It's not uncommon for an electrical device to quit working when it gets "warmed up".

Last thought - I've worked with quality assurance in my career- It's pretty common that the business folks decided to go with a cheaper material and warranty the product for only a year or sometimes 90 days.  They count on no one returning the product and they make a bigger profit.  If your lights were on the low end of the cost spectrum, it might be more beneficial to just upgrade. :)


What can be done to mitigate risk to property from large trees other than removal?

Your question is a bit broad since you've provided very little detail about the situation, but hiring an arborist to guide structural pruning would almost entirely eliminate risk of blowdown.

We have large white oaks in our neighborhood, and they're rarely blown completely down, but they do tend to lose large, long, high branches in severe storms. Shortening or removing those would substantially reduce risk. Obviously there's still cost involved, but perhaps quite a bit less, and you get to keep some beautiful trees.


How to calculate if a 15 amp circuit will be adequate for your needs?

Are you in North America with 120V power?   Your 15A circuit has 1800 watts and 1800 VA (a different way to measure watts).  The microwave, oil heater, and electric cooktop are each large heating loads.  Any one of them draw nearly the entire circuit capacity (1440 out of 1800 watts).  No two of them may ever run at the same time, but of course ther's no way to enforce this, so you will get breaker trips everytime you mess up.

Them mini-fridge will be small, probably no more than 300 watts when running.

In a "power is precious" situation you really, really want to be using LED light bulbs, and those will be tiny - 5-15 watts each.

TVs vary, but presuming it is not a tube TV, and is not gigantic, it will draw under 100 watts.  If it has a "wall wart" or lumpy DC power supply, it's all but certain it draws less than 100 and maybe even 50 watts.  You didn't mention a cable TV box (which can draw more than the TV).

All of these small loads can coexist with one of the large loads.

You didn't mention any decked out PC gaming rigs or laser printers; eqch of those can draw power like a large load.

All of the large loads will also add a lot of heat to the room, which may matter if it's summer.

How to calculate

A 15A circuit (assuming it's all yours) can supply nominal 1800 watts or VA of electricity.  That's 15A x 120V.

All your appliances will have a rating of either amps, watts, or VA.   If it's amps, multiply by 120V to make it comparable to watts and VA.   The difference between watts and VA comes up for certain electronic or motor loads.  VA will be higher, and you must use that in place of watts.

On some loads, their rating is excessive compared to what they actually draw, e.g. A 900 watt PC power supply rated to draw 10A (1200W).  (the difference is due to internal conversion losses).  if the PC has just a few components inside(i.e. only one modest video card and hard drive), it will draw considerably less than 1200W, and you can only measure that with a device such as a "Kill-a-Watt". Make sure to measure at worst-case, with the hard drive spinning and the video card rendering hard.


Is using 15 amp components on a 20 amp breaker against code?

NEC 2008

  210.21 Outlet Devices. Outlet devices shall have an ampere rating that is not less than the load to be served and shall comply with
  210.21(A) and (B).

  (B) Receptacles

  (1) Single Receptacle on an Individual Branch Circuit. A single receptacle installed on an individual branch circuit shall have an
  ampere rating not less than that of the branch circuit.

  Exception No. 1: A receptacle installed in accordance with
  430.81(B).

  Exception No. 2: A receptacle installed exclusively for the use of a cord-and-plug-connected arc welder shall be permitted to have an
  ampere rating not less than the minimum branch-circuit conductor
  ampacity determined by 630.11(A) for arc welders.

  (2) Total Cord-and-Plug-Connected Load. Where connected to a branch circuit supplying two or more receptacles or outlets, a
  receptacle shall not supply a total cord and-plug-connected load in
  excess of the maximum speciﬁed in Table 210.21(B)(2).

  (3) Receptacle Ratings. Where connected to a branch circuit supplying two or more receptacles or outlets, receptacle ratings shall
  conform to the values listed in Table 210.21(B)(3), or where larger
  than 50 amperes, the receptacle rating shall not be less than the
  branch-circuit rating.

  Exception No. 1: Receptacles for one or more cord-andplug-connected arc welders shall be permitted to have ampere ratings not less than
  the minimum branch-circuit conductor ampacity permitted by 630.11(A)
  or (B) as applicable for arc welders.

  Exception No. 2: The ampere rating of a receptacle installed for electric discharge lighting shall be permitted to be based on
  410.62(C)

  (4) Range Receptacle Rating. The ampere rating of a range receptacle shall be permitted to be based on a single range demand
  load as speciﬁed in Table 220.55.

If it is a single receptacle on a 20 Amp circuit, it must be a 20 Amp receptacle (aside from the 2 exceptions).  If there are multiple receptacles on a 20 Amp circuit, the receptacles can be either 15 or 20 Amp (aside from the exceptions).

This is to allow You to have multiple devices plugged in drawing less than 15 Amps each, but the total draw on the circuit may be greater than 15 Amps.

NOTE:
Keep in mind that NEC defines a receptacle as follows.

  Receptacle. A receptacle is a contact device installed at the outlet for the connection of an attachment plug. A single receptacle
  is a single contact device with no other contact device on the same
  yoke. A multiple receptacle is two or more contact devices on the same
  yoke.

So a duplex receptacle would be considered two receptacles, according to this definition. Which means you can install a single 15 Amp duplex receptacle on a 20 ampere circuit, without violating this code.


I can see the ridges left by the installers notched trowel. Look at the back of any loose tiles. It should have thinset on at least 80% of it's back. I'm guessing the thinset wasn't mixed correctly. If it is to dry the tile does not get pressed into the notched adhesive so as to form a mechanical bond. You can check if the tiles are affixed properly by giving them a slight rap with your knuckle. You should hear a dull sound. A hollow or "ting" reverberation indicates a void or low spot were the thinset isn't fully supporting the tile.


Take a look at the image below. Code requires you have at least 3 feet in front of the panel, 6.5 above, and 30 inches side to side. There is a trick with the 30 inches that it can be measured from either side of the panel, dead center, etc. so you get some wiggle room there. Based on what you've said about your laundry room, it sounds like code-wise it will probably work. (Although bear in mind some regions apply additional codes)

However, you also need to take into account what's in the wall. Between a door and window you'll have king studs and who knows what other load bearing stuff that could interfere with box placement or getting wires to the box. There is also the issue with wires being short when rerouted so now you'd need to make additional splices which could require water-proofing if they are still below flood level.

You can purchase outdoor breaker boxes which are rated NEMA-3-ish which means they are suitable for outdoor use and protect from rain, but as Harper mentioned, they don't protect for dust, bugs, etc. I would also agree with Jim that moving the panel would not be a cheap option. My guess is you could pop some concrete in the basement, dig a hole, and put in a good sump pump with a failure alarm for far less that moving the panel will cost.


Replaced Door Knobs, How to Fill Extra Space

Now that you have posted a right nice picture of the new striker plate installation let me comment on this.

The craftsman way to fix this is to cut out a section of the door frame where the old striker plate and its recess holes are located (plus some extra). Then a carefully cut and fitted new piece of wood is glued into place to make the door frame whole again.
The new striker plate would be installed over the new wood region with the appropriate blind depth recess holes made behind it to permit the door catch and deadbolt enter the frame area beyond the striker plate.
Note that it is not conventional practice to mount the striker plate on top of the surface of the door frame as you showed in the picture. The normal process is that the outline of the plate is marked and then some wood chisel work is done to recess the plate by an amount equal to its thickness so that its surface is even with the door frame surface.


How to put a 1ft piece of a 4x4'' post onto existing one without the connection being visible?

Unless you stain or paint the fence, you will see the joint no matter what since the grain will not line up.

For this type of project I would recommend using a scarf joint.

This provides a much stronger connection than a simple butt joint. You get an increased glue area and the fastener geometry combined with the scarf will prevent the two pieces from bending apart. (You can use dowels or carriage bolts or screws. Dowels would be the least visible.)

A square scarf joint (as pictured) is pretty easy to make and very strong, but if you really want to hide the glue line as much as possible, you can make a diagonal joint.

That's a bit more work, though, especially if you have to do a lot of posts. The square scarf will tolerate a little less cutting precision as well.


Haven't heard back from you, so here goes.

About the panel/breakers

This thing you have is a meter-main with 12 breaker spaces.  The main is "backfed" meaning the main breaker is just one of the breakers.

The Challenger breakers are known to be defective. And because of that, many electricians treat Challenger panels as if they're defective.  They're not. There's nothing wrong with Challenger panels.  The breaker problem can be very easily solved: Eaton "BR" breakers are cross-listed for it.  Take a look at any BR breaker, it says

  Type BR
  Type C

Type C is for your panel.   Ba da bing! That's easy.

By the way, if the home inspection report had said something about that and you said "meh, whatever", replacing those Challengers with BRs would have prevented this.  So next time you see something like that on an inspection report...

About that bus

Your plan, as you have presented it, is to "just replace the bus" using a components supply chain that does not exist in real life.  This brand has been out of production for 30 years.  Compatible buses go in the trash every week, but nobody thinks to upcycle them onto eBay or Craigslist becuase they are obsolete and connecting with a buyer is extremely unlikely.  There are companies that specialize in old Challenger panels, and you can try, but this is an odd duck even among Challenger.

So replacing this bus is not gonna happen.

As far as finding a modern bus that will fit, the problem is panels of this style are also obsolete: the very compact buses and gutters are now illegal due to "new" rules regarding wire bending radius (see that neutral wire for why).

So fuggedaboutit.  You only have 2 options: Save this bus or replace the entire meter-main assembly.  Chassis and all.   I'll talk about saving this bus.

Saving the bus

The bus position containing the melted breaker (9-12) is permanently useless.  So now we have two questions:

Is the bus underneath the fried breaker intact enough to use the bus area below it?  (Because the feeder wires will reach there).
Is the bus underneath the main breaker intact enough to continue in service?

Either way, we are going to change all the Challenger breakers here for Eaton BR/C.  The Eaton BR2100 ought to do the trick, at $40 each.  Betcha didn't think you could get out of this for $100, did you? :)

If all busing is in good shape

In this case, we leave the main breaker at its position, and fit the feeder breaker in positions 13-16.  The cable will reach.  Easy peasy!

If the bus below space 9-12 is fried, but the main is OK

In this case, we leave the main breaker where it is.   We move the feeder breaker to positions 5-8.  Any remaining breakers go to positions 1-4; no breakers exist below the main.   This will involve extending the feeder wires; pull new wires if they're short, otherwise extend them with insulated Polaris lug splices.

If the bus under the main is roached

In this case, you will need to remove the bus bars which come off the meter socket, and replace them with #3Cu XHHW wire.  This will need to be physically protected where they come through the hole.

The main breaker is then moved to spaces 13-16 (below the melted breaker), and it will need to be bolted down the same way it's bolted down now.   The feeder breaker is moved to spaces 17-20.  That leaves spaces 21-22 for anything that is now above the main breaker. Remember this panel permits "BR/C" duplex or quadplex breakers, which you can put in spaces 21-24.


What can I do if my washing machine inlet hoses are not compatible with the plumbing?

From the installation instructions1 for Haier washing machines

Press the lower end of the lock lever and push down the slider. Take off the water inlet hose jointer from the water inlet hose component.

Loosen the screw till the water faucet can be accessed. Put the jointer of the water inlet hose on the faucet. (If the faucet is too large and the jointer can not be set on the water faucet,please loosen the four screws and take out the bushing in the jointer.
The front end of the faucet must be smooth, otherwise it may leak water

Fasten the four screws evenly.

That's it
1. Link is to a similar set of instructions; the diagrams are slightly different but the text is the same.


Electrician recommends to replace 50 amp with 60 amp breaker

Loose connections can cause a lot of problems, including:

Higher power usage - which turns into heat - which can cause a fire (though in this case, the breaker did its job and stopped that)
Arcing - which can cause a fire

So if tightening the connections solved the problem then you should be all set.

In addition, as you suspected, simply replacing a breaker with a larger breaker is not to be done on a whim. It should only be done when:

The wires are able to support the additional current (which is likely NOT the case)
The equipment will be protected properly even with the larger breaker

With a 20-year track record plus tightening connections solving the problem, all indications are that upsizing the breaker would be a very bad thing to do.

The appliance guy blaming the breaker (or more likely "appliance is OK so this must be something in the electrical system") is actually reasonable. An electrician looking at it and recommending replacing a breaker with a larger one based on an overcurrent trip after 20 years is being irresponsible.

Anecdotally, I suspect the appliance guy and the electrician are both getting relatively underpaid by the warranty company - they (generically, not one particular company) are known (at least in my area) to be a bad deal all around - and therefore likely to end up with the "low bidders". Who may not be quite as qualified as you would hope. Just saying...


Is sealing via tape necessary for knee wall foam board insulation.?

Sealing the seams will not increase the R-value of the insulation.  However, sealing the seams is important as an air infiltration/moisture seal, preventing air from infiltrating  and, as a result, preventing moisture (condensation) from occurring between the foam board and batt. Typically expanding foam creates a better, longer-lasting seal than tape.


Bonding new communications system to home grounding system

The water main is a grounding electrode, but not a grounding electrode conductor
You are correct that a metal water service line is considered a primary grounding electrode when present; however, not the least due to the potential for the utility to replace said metal water service line with a nonconductive, non-grounding plastic water service line, the NEC requires a supplemental "made electrode", usually a pair of ground rods 8' long and 6-8' minimum apart, when the primary electrode is a water service line.  For these rods, NEC 250.66(A) lets you use 6AWG copper to tie them back to the main grounding electrode conductor.
However, you must tie those rods back to the grounding electrode conductor in addition to tying the lightning arrestor grounding wire to said ground rods.  (This is required by NEC 250.50 and 800.100(B)(2) or 800.100(D).)  Furthermore, the reason you see the Grounding Electrode Conductor tied to the grounding electrode at the service entrance point is because NEC 250.68(C)(1) requires that connection to be made within 5' of where the water service enters the house.  (This requirement exists so that a plumber doesn't accidentally leave your house afloat in the electrical sense of the term.)
So, I would use plan #3, but modified with the addition of a second rod, and more importantly modified to use either a split-bolt or a T-tap connector (Ilsco GTT-2-2 or equivalent) to connect the bonding jumper to the GEC directly without having to sever the latter.  You can connect the lightning arrester's bonding wire the same way for now; generally speaking, though, you'll want to put in an Intersystem Bonding Termination device at the main panel if at all possible, as that provides a central place for future communications grounding wires to land.


You can do whatever you like.
How well it works may vary drastically.
In this case, the odds are that it will work very poorly. More functional options tend to be a bit more complex and involve circulating fluids that are warmed by the combustion source through the slab in pipes. Direct conduction becomes very ineffective when distances are long.


Live wire running through entire apartment wall?

Screw into studs, not drywall anchors, for something heavy that will be above your head while you sleep!

If you're worried about shorting the circuit with your screw, turn the breaker off first.

Measure voltage between hot, neutral and ground, and make sure its 0.  Then measure resistance, and write down what you find.

Then try to make sure with the stud finder that you're screwing directly into the middle of a stud.  It is then, very very unlikely you will hit the wire.  Especially 4-5 feet above the floor!

Once the screw is in, measure resistance again and compare to what you wrote.

If you see a significant change in resistance (>2%) then you might have hit the wire with your screw, and should take steps to repair from it.  You could disconnect the outlet in the overhead's junction box, or you could cut open drywall and replace the wire.

But more than likely you will measure no change in resistance, and can turn the breaker back on with confidence that you're OK.


Removing a wax finish from a wood countertop, in preparation for tung oil

Wax is pretty hard to remove, everyone seems to agree about that, then everyone disagrees about the best way.  Here is ONE way.

You can use a solvent, rags, and elbow grease to remove wax.  When you apply the solvent to the wax, you get a liquid with wax dissolved in it, and when you wipe it the mix is absorbed by the rag, and thus removed.  With enough passes of solvent and rag you carry away most of the wax.

For the solvent usually mineral spirits to get off as much as possible, and maybe denatured alcohol for a last pass.  (The alcohol will remove the mineral spirits as well.)

For the rags, try fine steel wool or scotch pads for the first pass, then paper towels.  Use a lot of paper towels.  If the paper towel is dirty it's no longer removing wax it's just moving it around.

I don't recommend using a heat gun, to me that just melts the wax deeper into the wood, but it does make sense to keep the ambient temperature in the room on the warm side and keep the solvents at room temperature, not out in a cold garage or something.

When you think you've removed the wax, let that last pass of alcohol dry then spray the surface with water to test.  If the water beads up, try to remove more wax.  (Note that some naturally oily woods may bead up even with the oil removed so this isn't a perfect test.)


What's the best soundproofing solution to rubber coming off of double-paned transom windows?

The "rubber" falling out could be weatherstripping but is most likely the window gasket.

Example above is just one type, not your type.   But the gasket locks the window into the grooves around the wood.   The provides weather tightness with some very mild sound absorption abilities.
The fact that these windows look to be under an underhang means that the rain probably won't get through, bad gasket or not.   So for now it is aesthetics and slight insulation.
To replace these you might as well have a window or glass company come out and do the repair on site or to get brand new frames/windows.   Either way there will need to be some disassembling of the trim/window.
You could bypass that by gluing weatherstripping around the window frame and if you can get a slim band to look good - that could easily work for the short term.    More of a craft project.
Any sound issues you have, have almost zero to do with this.


replace pressure switch it is a possibility that it is bad


What are the consequences of not completely removing the old polyurethane?

I have tried in the past to use a belt sander. Now I rent a drum sander and finish close to the walls with a belt sander. The preparation is very important for a quality job. Any old poly left may appear yellow when a new coat is applied. If using a oil finish it will be an absolute must to remove the poly because the poly will not penetrate even a thin coat of poly. I know you don't want to restart with a drum but it will look much better and you can use a finer belt Providing a better finish in the long run.


Hard piped connection to water heater with anode rod on outlet

I can't imagine a code that would prohibit flexible water lines, but all building codes are up to the local jurisdiction so it is possible.  In earthquake country on the west coast, flexible water lines are required in some places and optional but recommended in others.

Looking at, for example, Daly City water heater requirements (http://www.dalycity.org/Page192.aspx) say flex lines are recommended but not mandatory.  In either case, "A union or flared connection is required on hot and cold water lines to facilitate removal of the appliance (CPC 609.5)".   Flex lines give you the flare connection.

There are two common types of flexible lines for water heaters: copper and rubber+steel.  It could be that in your jurisdiction, one type is allowed but the other is prohibited.

A union is a pipe joint with matching threads, made specifically for allowing disconnection of a hard connection.  Whoever installed yours without a union didn't know what they were doing.  You can easily add a PVC union to the existing setup if you want to avoid adding a flex line for any reason.

But personally, I would install the copper flex lines on both hot and cold, until a local inspector told me specifically it was not allowed.

And while you're at it, if this is a gas heater, make sure it is 18 inches off the floor too.  :-)


Reinforce aluminum pipe attached to wood posts in fence

Epoxy would be your best all-round bet for this type of application. It bonds reasonably well to clean PVC as well as to aluminum. It bonds extremely well to wood.

I'd have recommendations for a specific type of epoxy, but just about anything will work in your project.

The strength comes from clean surfaces. Use a light sandpaper on the aluminum, perhaps clean the PVC with acetone, even a bit of sandpaper on the wood is a good idea, blowing out the sawdust. The sanding of the aluminum provides a bit of a grip area along with getting a clean bond.

Epoxy does not require clamping for good results. Excessive clamping forces out the epoxy reducing the bond, but you would not have an easy job clamping your project as described.


What wiring do I need for a fan/light/night-light fixture?

I just installed one of these combo fan/light/nightlight fixtures in my bathroom.

We used a Leviton triple rocker switch like this one:

We used cable with 4 wires between the switch and the fixture.  The hot wire goes into the switch.  The neutral connects to one of the 4 wires, the other 3 connect to the switch.

At the fixture, the neutral is connected to the neutral wires for all 3 functions (if there are 3 wires, there might only be one), and the 3 switched wires connect to the other 3 functions.


Remove it from the bench and soak it in lime remover (white vinegar, dilute muriatic acid, etc)
Disassemble it, and clean the parts.
lubricate it with Vaseline (or other petroleum jelly)
Replace any worn seal found, reinstall it
There should probably be some sort of circular gasket or o-ring between the base and the benchtop.


What is the most durable wood to use for an outdoor swing set

I would highly recommend Cedar.  Similar to Redwood, it is resistant to insects and rot.  If you can source it, Eastern White Cedar is a wonderful wood to make a play set out of, as it wont give splinters as easily as many woods will.

I went a bit overboard on the play set I built last summer.  I went with rough cut western red cedar 4x4s, and jointed/planed them down to about 3 3/4" x 3 3/4".  This allowed me to end up with very square members.  This was necessary as I did everything using mortise and tenon joinery (yes, I went overboard).

The primary problem with cedar warping/twisting is when it is unsupported.  Once supported properly (i.e.- assembled as a structure), the warping/twisting is minimal.


You also find drain assemblies with 1-1/4" tailpieces, but they're almost exclusively used for sinks. They're used with a 1-1/2" to 1-1-/4" reducer since the PVC drain plumbing usually won't be smaller than 1-1/2".

The diameter of the actual threaded drain assembly isn't smaller in these cases. They fit the sink/tub the same way. Just the tailpiece is smaller.

Post photos of your situation for more specific advice.


Is there an easy way to convert a regular railing to a banister one?

No easy way.  The half wall is going to be built like a wall, with studs and a top and bottom plate.

You'll have to rip it out, and install a banister in its place.


What black wire is it & the connector at the rice cooker?

The wire is called fixture wire it has a fiberglass looking outer braid and many times a very thin white Teflon type inner insulation. The size of the wire is based on the wattage of the cooker on the “spade” or disconnect that is a female and if in a hot area requires a high temp female crimp connector standard nickel plated copper may work but may not last long, the same with nickel plated copper splices when hot the copper may relax. It took me a few high temp repairs to find ~900 degree f crimp connectors, if you also posted about bad fuses a day or so ago I would solder the same as my other advice but in this case most insulation other than fiberglass/ high temp slide over will be the best option.


The main danger is hair dryers is that you damage the freezer parts. If you elect to use one, use it on low or no heat. Remember, most modern freezers use plastic for everything they can, and hair dryers are designed to dry hair fast, not defrost freezers.

Compressed air will probably not do it. Compressed air will expand when you use it, which makes it cool down.

My experience is that freezers will freeze up with either insufficient drainage or insufficient air flow. Used to have a Kenmore that would defrost into a pan, but there was nothing to keep the drain in the pan defrosted. After a few service calls, a repairman installed what looked like a specific device to transfer the defrost heat from the coils down into the pan and that problem stopped. Another time there was insufficient air flow into the refrigerator from the freezer, and the freezer became too cold as a result.


Light switch with two wires, but with voltage between them

What you describe is normal.

When you close the switch you complete the circuit and the voltage across the switch will drop to zero.

With the switch open, there is no current flowing but the wire to the light is connected through the light to neutral. You are measuring the difference between neutral and hot (live)


can i use a mortar shower pan before its tiled

You could use the shower if your drain is flush with the pan and sealed. You would not want standing soapy water left after showering. If I did this I would etch the pan with a weak Muriatic acid and water solution prior to putting the tile in to remove the soap residue.


Will tripled 18' 2x10 beams carry a tractor over a stream?

I just ran some structural checks and everything passes if you use Douglas Fir #1 planks for the deck. Anything lower quality will not work structurally.

Beams are fine as is, just make sure they're bolted/screwed together well. Also, make sure that the wheels on either side are centered between the two beams. Don't drive it directly over a single beam. This way each beam is taking 1/4 of the weight. You do not have something that's "over engineered", it's close.

Regarding the soil, the further away you can get from the soil drop off the better. If you can get 20' long beams, do it. I also recommend placing a continuous 2x10 under the end of the beams to act as your foundation, otherwise you may rip up the soil there.


Unfortunately, you have gotten yourself into a situation that is most likely going to require opening the wall to replumb the water supplies and possibly the drain. If you have access to the back through another wall, then you will not have to remove some tiles. If you don't have access, then you have to open it up from the front, not an easy job. The support bolts are probably secured to a horizontal stud and bolted on both sides of the stud to prevent them from turning.

Is it possible to see a pic of what you took out and what you want to install?


Install Tankless water heater in the cold line

I really don't understand your proposal but if you're adamant about it then just supplement your hot line with a tankless closer to your fixtures. If you set your tank to 125F and your tankless to 120F then your tankless should only operate for a very short period instead of always warming the incoming cold line. If your tank ever runs out then your tankless will pick up the slack.

Better yet, relocate your water heater closer to your fixtures; this would save you thousands as average cost for tankless install is $4,000.

I see your proposal has a third line going from the tankless to your fixtures but fixtures don't accept a third line. You would have to junction it into one of the lines (presumably the hot) right before the fixture. Even if you junction into a hot line it will be a mix of hot (tankless) plus cold (tank) at the hot tap until both lines are full of hot water so this would actually increase the total wait time for hot water at the tap.
One thing you cannot overlook is that tankless units are typically 200,000 BTU/HR and typical residential natural gas can supply about 225,000 BTU/HR so a gas upgrade will probably be required.


Is my bathroom wet-venting plan reasonable?

All of these layouts look good. The venting should be fine. You're connecting the lines with wyes, not tees, which is good. 45° Bends in the 3" cleanout line should be fine; a snake will easily make the turn.
Altogether, it looks like you've put a lot of thought into this. My one recommendation would be to check your state venting code to see the maximum distance allowed between a drain and its vent, just to make sure everything is close enough. I don't foresee a problem, but it doesn't hurt to check.


Replaced bad ballast and maginfying light still won't work

If you have a starter I would replace that it is more common to have those go bad than the ballast, the starter provides the strike voltage to initiate the plasma in the tube, the ballast or inductor is to limit the current once the lamp strikes and the internal lamp resistance drops.


The very fact that you separated them for testing is why one is not hot.
Circuits (coming off a breaker) power more than one outlet.
Hot and neutral enter the box on one cable.  To get to the next outlet, they exit the box on another cable.  Each wire has a black and white, and in most cases black=hot.
If you disconnet the two wires from each other, one will be connected to the breaker.  The other will be disconnected from the breaker because you disconnected it.
It's common to use a receptacle itself as a splicing point.  The recep has 2 screws that are connected to each other *and to the socket slots).  The 2 screws can be used to splice 2 wires to each other (and the socket slots of course).
This doesn't always work, receptacles have "tabs".
If you don't like the idea of using a receptacle as a splice, then look up "pigtailing".


Tenant side

What you need is a plug-in electric meter. It's called a Kill-a-Watt and it costs $20-30. Every time you turn something on, go check the Kill-a-Watt and see what you're pulling.  It offers several figures, the one you want is amps.

I gather you don't have a foggy clue how much power various devices draw.  You'll get edumacated right quick with this!

As long as the lights are LED, they and the fan will surely draw less than 1 amp together. If they are not LED, make them LED.

Also, if you are paying for this facility, 2 days to reset a breaker is a violation of tenant occupancy laws, and they are violating state law by renting a unit with that problem.  Contact the local government and report a fair-housing violation.  Such a problem is acceptable (e.g. In a hotel room) when there is competent on-site maintenance capable of dealing with the problem in a sub-1-hour time frame.

Provider side

Now if you are the provider and you are installing this, that's a horse of a different color.  I would expect any day now, the inspector to show up, spend the whole day, and have to call down to City Hall for more red tags. However...

You should have a service panel in each unit, and the main breaker in that service panel must be a shunt trip type.   These allow "remote" trip of the breaker, or to be more precise, allow electronics to artificially induce a trip.  You could use a GFCI breaker and have your electronics induce a ground fault, but a shunt trip will be far more intuitive for users, since it looks like an overload trip not a GFCI trip.

Then, you'll need to build an Arduino style gadget that sits inside the local breaker panel. It has a current transformer (CT) on the incoming power so it knows how much power is being drawn.  It has one job: activate the shunt trip before the remote (inaccessible) breaker trips.  So it will need to know the trip curve of that breaker.

This won't protect from all situations like a dead short, where it's anyone's guess which breaker will trip first.  But in simple "too much stuff plugged in" overloads, it will do the trick.

It would also help to have an ammeter on the service panel, so occupants can see how close they're gettng to trouble.

Also... Don't punish tenants for not knowing what appliances draw... because you don't know yourself.  Most people don't.  You know how to find out, but you have to look, right?


What are these extra wires behind my thermostat?

They are very old wires with cloth sheathing. My guess is the house did not originally have air conditioning and they needed one more wire so they just pulled an entirely new cable. If you were really curious you would have to trace them out to either the attic or crawl space. I would bet the other end is dangling near your furnace if they didn’t move it when installing air conditioning.


Are all ungrounded >120v outlets now outlawed?

The outlets themselves are not "outlawed".

Article 250.20 lists AC systems that are required to be grounded.
Article 250.21 lists AC systems that are not required to be grounded.

The receptacle or plug configuration you use depends on the system you are connecting it to. NEMA 1-15 receptacles are still allowed to be used on ungrounded systems.

As long as the plug or receptacle is rated for the system it is to be used on, it can be used. The NFPA does not dictate the style of devices we use. If I had a device with straight 240 power with no neutral load I could use a NEMA 10 if I so desired with the third prong used for the equipment ground. For instance a large compressor. Normally this would be hard wired but the Code does not require that.

To summarize the NEC does not dictate the style of plug or receptacle used it only requires the system to be either grounded or ungrounded. The devices follow that requirement. Trade practice is followed to install the receptacles and plugs most used here in the US.


How to avoid water build-up in bathroom's passive ventilation shaft?

The problem can be solved by draining the vent. Be sure to use a p trap to prevent sewer gas from entering. Yes, the problem could be condensed moisture, but it might also be rainwater that is collecting. Either way, a chimeny cap that is shaped like a cone will cause an aspiration effect (like the negative pressure under an airplane wing) which will naturally draw air upward through the vents; plus it will make sure that rain water doesn't collect in the vent.

I would also consider adding a ball valve after the p trap, because with these corrections, I wouldn't expect to find enough water (through condensation) to fill a p trap; and sewer gas could enter through the p trap if there isn't any water in it... so have the ball valve ready (to close the drain) just in case the chimney cap solved the problem.


Appropriate level of protection for mortar at 0-4 degrees?

Just tent the project for a few days. The heat from the ground and solar gain will keep the mortar from freezing. Cure will be slower, but that's ok if you aren't in a hurry. You could introduce a small electric heater, but don't go beyond that.

Be wary of running heaters inside the enclosure. It's very easy to dry out the mix to the point where it doesn't cure at all. I've seen front porches, beautifully formed, crumble under foot traffic after several days in a heated tent. The mix was completely dry near the heater.


Clarification on sharing a neutral for 2 circuits

You'll use a double pole 20 ampere breaker. It will have two handles that are tied together, and will say "20" on the handles.

It should look similar to this...

(source: homedepot.com)

I'm not sure why you're planning to run 10 AWG conductors, but typically 20 ampere circuits only require 12 AWG conductors.


What kind of mask is required for grouting?

Usually that warning applies only in California—most states are not at risk.  :-)

The carcinogen involved is cement dust, specifically its components of tri- and dicalcium silicate, alumina, tricalcium aluminate, and iron oxide.  The hazard extends to skin, eyes, mouth, and respiration.

To be completely protected, a moon suit (made of Tyvek in the photo) is in line with the most pessimistic expectations.  However, the practical alternative (and recommended by CDC and OSHA) is any quarter-mask respirator with an N-95, R, or P filter to arrest fine particles, along with gloves, and enclosed eye protection—and avoiding unnecessary cement contact.

Many workers are skeptical of the carcinogenic property of cement dust:  it is common to see experienced workers taking only minor precautions.  Usually wearing only a mask while handling the powder.  Once it is moistened and and dust is no longer a factor, most don't do anything special.  But it is a strong caustic alkalai, so do take care not to get it inside or on you for an extended time.


What does it mean when a drill says it is 3/8", and where do I get bits and extensions for it?

3/8 inch is the maximum shaft diameter that fits in the chuck.  That doesn't mean you can't drill larger holes, but the part the drill chuck grips has to be this size or smaller. (Some higher-powered drills have half -inch chucks.)

Bits should be widely available -- home centers, hardware stores, most places that sell tools.


Can I attach the hot hose from my washer to my boiler relief?

Sadly, the answer is "no". Hot water, both in the boiler and in the radiators, is very corrosive IF there is oxygen in it. Water from your well or town has dissolved air, including oxygen (it's why fish survive in water). Once the water is in the system, the oxygen combines with the boiler/radiator linings, corroding it.

There isn't a lot of oxygen in any one volume of water, and the oxygen in the system will soon get used up, stopping the corrosion. However, if you keep changing the system's water (typically through a leak, or with your suggestion wholesale by taking the system water for your washing machine) then you're continually replenishing the water and thus its contained oxygen. Bingo: corrosion city.

There's almost certainly other good reasons as well (e.g. the water in a boiler is fairly low-pressure, so you wouldn't get great water flow; the boiler fill valve isn't meant to run constantly, etc.), but having to replace your boiler and radiators every few years would trump it all.


External TV antenna grounded inside attic?

You should run a ground wire from the the mast grounding block, but I would not ground it to anything other than the grounding electrode conductor at the source. If you have a ground rod that is where I would connect it. If there is lightning, your mast could be subject to a strike and I would want it to go directly to ground and not through any other part of my system that could be upstream of some pieces of equipment that may be damaged. Use at least a solid #10 and make sure any radius has a nice long arch.

The metal sheath in a coax is not a ground, it is a shield which drains off misc radio and electronic interference. So it needs to be grounded on one end and left open on the other. So if it has a coax block you can ground it there just make sure you are not grounded at the other end. You also need to make sure the the coax block is grounded to the mast.

Good Luck


How can I remove the side glass pane from a patio sliding glass door?

I'm guessing, but here's my suspicion based on the pics posted.  I may delete this answer after you post an updated close up pic.

Where your red arrow points - the white and black strip - I suspect that's the stop strip.  It goes all the way around the window panel and appears to lock it in place.  I suspect there's one on the outside as well.

To remove the glass, you're probably going to need to carefully remove this strip from the outside of the door frame.  Then the window pane itself should lift up and out from the bottom.

To re-secure your new pet door will include re-installing the stop strip.


you can call a HVAC company, you can also call a general contractor. Going out on a limb here, there is a good chance it already isn't to code, many many many installations aren't. As a matter of fact, it is advisable and recommended the dryer piping get cleaned out once to twice a year (if you use it a lot, twice).


Why is there a beaded tie on new fire extinguishers?

The plastic ties are a tamper evident device, which lets you know if the fire extinguisher has been used.  It also helps to prevent the pin from accidentally becoming dislodged, and potentially lost. They have a very low breaking strength, and can easily be broken by twisting (or pulling, but more difficult) the pin from the extinguisher.


How can I remove a lemon from a toilet drain?

There are attachments for coily drain snakes that have a cork screw type end on them. One example is like this:

Picture Source

Use of such attachment could screw itself into the lemon and allow pulling it out the way it went in.


Replacing halogen with LED - will existing transformer work?

With the additional information provided these 12v lamps are designed to work with standard halogen 12v fixtures since your wattage of the new lamps is less than the wattage of the halogen yes they will work. It looks like 1/2 the wattage so there is the savings and in my experiance you will have more light or perceived light because light meters read light we cannot see where LED's produce light in a narrow band with so power is not wasted.


How do I deciding whether to install an attic venting system?

I think an attic ventilation system will definitely help with your problems. Fortunately, you can also sort of step up with ventilation as you go, adding powered fans if the vents you put in at first dont work as well as you'd expect.

In the winter, having a properly vented attic will help prevent ice dams in gutters, and can help with heat problems in the summer too.  In your attic (above the insulation) should ideally be close to the same temperature as the outside.  It should be cold in the winter, and hot in the summer.

For the ventilation, you should have some soffit vents on the bottom and a vent on the side (near the top) or on the top (like a ridge-line vent).  That will allow the air to move freely.

If the air doesn't move as well as you'd like, you can wire in an attic fan to help push the air along.


It's a shame your contractor couldn't follow directions.
Check to see if the paint he used contained a primer, many paints out there now do.
The primer you purchased can be applied over latex paint so you could still use it over the painted ceiling and then repaint it.


What kind of glue should I use for insulation to wood?

You want project adhesive. It's like construction adhesive, but water based. The solvent in "heavy duty" construction adhesive dissolves the foam, which probably resulted in the poor bond you experienced. Project adhesive labels often mention foam as a typical use.

Be aware that water evaporates more slowly than solvents, and therefore your bonds require a longer cure time.

Liquid Nails is a brand name. The company makes both products.


Unfinished large panel opening in outside wall

I would put some sheet vinyl in there to act as a moisture barrier and then reinstall one of those cement boards into the opening. Then get some stucco mesh and attach it to the cement board and then apply the stucco. It might take a layer or two to bring it to the right thickness. Once the top coat has been completed, run a shallow nap paint roller over the area to try and match the texture. You might have to practice that a bit.
I agree with @jsotola .... sure looks like a cat or doggie door.


Is a gravity or spring damper sufficient for a make up air vent?

This is a good question and I would say it depends. I'm not saying it is impossible, but as you have pointed out these devices operate on static pressure. I am just wondering if it is commercially viable and if anyone makes one that would work in your scenario. It would have to open under very light pressure differences and I don't know of any manufacturer who has one for this purpose. I know this is the same principal as an economizer in a RTU, but they are mechanical.

May be someone more experienced in the mechanics of air flow knows about one.

Good luck.


In and Out doesn't matter on a 4-way

A four-way (reversing) switch doesn't care about which way it "points" in the circuit -- the functionality works the same nonetheless.  It's no different in spirit than swapping the terminals on a single pole switch, even.


Is there a name for PVC pipe that's approx 1/2" ID and 5/8" OD?

It's not PVC, it's either PB or PEX, which are sized similar to copper tubing. They normally are connected with barbed fittings with compression rings but compression fittings with metal inserts also can be used.


Can I plug my 40 ampere stove into a 30 ampere receptacle?

Using the 30 A receptacle is a dangerous idea. The internals of the receptacle are designed for a maximum of 30 A, and putting 40 A through it could cause a fire. The receptacle needs to be replaced with a 50 A model (since they don't make 40 A receptacles).

It's fine to have a 40 A breaker feeding a 50 A receptacle. You need to also match the wire size to the breaker rating. A 40 A circuit requires at minimum 8 AWG copper wire, or perhaps thicker for longer runs. 6 AWG might be a good idea. Since you are replacing the receptacle, you should make sure that there is a dedicated safety ground (so four wires are run from the circuit breaker to the receptacle.

Also, I doubt that the old oven died because of the wrong receptacle (assuming that the receptacle is undamaged). However, I have heard of equipment being damaged when not properly grounded (My mom's gas range died prematurely after the installers failed to connect the ground). Double-check the voltages by measuring all 6 pairs of voltages using a voltmeter (Should be 240 between lines (L-L), 120 from L-G and L-N, and 0 from N-G).

Use caution when working with electricity. Don't forget to turn off the breaker (and verify that power is disconnected) before disassembling anything.


Is there a good way to fill a pocket hole in a finished piece of wood?

There are many ways to fill the holes.  Here's a good link that shows a comparison of what the results look like for six different methods: http://fixthisbuildthat.com/6-ways-to-plug-fill-pocket-holes-how-to/.

Getting the appearance to match in a visible area is the problem.  You can under-fill the hole with any type of filler and then fill the last bit with glue and sawdust from the same wood.  You can experiment with stain to match the color, but the grain pattern won't match.

You can do better with wood plugs.  Kreg sells plugs of various woods, although you can probably find pine ones at your local hardware store.  If you can get plugs in the same wood, you can stain it in advance to match, then glue it in place.

If you can't find plugs in matching wood, and the available woods stain noticeably different, you can use a plug cutter to cut you own plugs from the same wood stock.  The first link above shows how to do it with dowels and a flush cut saw.

You can use the same procedure for plugs you drill out yourself).  You may want to drill a pocket hole in some scrap to use as a jig.  Hold the plug in the pocket hole by temporary means to cut it flat.  Then you will have better access to remove it for trial staining.

Another approach is to drill the plug cutter at the same angle as the pocket. This will produce plugs with the same exposed grain on an already flat face.  You might need to make the plugs a little oversized so you can clean up any rough edges.


If I manually close the garage, the garage door chain will run with no issue.

Does this mean you detached the door from the drive?

  Does all of this mean that there is an issue with the actual door?

Not necessarily.

It could be the chain is fouled somehow, or that the door opener casing has shifted or loosened.

In my experience in the damp Pacific Northwet is that the (wooden) door has swollen with the onslaught of autumn rains and now binds slightly against the door frame.

To confirm this as the cause, raise and lower the door manually being careful not to push or pull the door into or away from the frame and see what parts might be touching.  If the door is large, a helper is quite useful.

Also, inspect the rails and roller guides to see if there is anything amiss.  Give all the parts a good firm wiggle to see if they might be shifting under the strain of the door moving.


Should I fix whole house filter just after the pump?

I would put the filter on the pump outlet. If you put the filter on the inlet it may cause pump cavitation but on the output side the pressure will push the water through with no problem.

Remember that filters on drinking water systems need to be replaced regularly to prevent things from growing. Many times UV systems are added to reduce risk of growth in filter systems. Pre-filters on a pump can be good and bad. If the filter gets plugged it will limit the flow to the pump and shorten the life. I like screen filters to prevent small grit from wearing the pump, but  these may need to be cleaned quite often depending on the size of the filter and amount of water pumped.


Clear Silicone caulk, or, if you can find it, Lexel, which is truly a better alternative to silicone. Make sure you remove any old caulk that is there, clean the surface thoroughly with denatured alcohol (and then wait for the denatured alcohol to 'dry' off), and apply it in a smooth continuous bead. For extra bonus points, tape off the area on the glass with blue or green painter's tape before you apply the caulk so that you don't leave any excess behind.

Caulk the entire way around the window, on the inside of the shower. You'll want to use a bead of caulk that fills the gap, so space the tape a bit more than the height of the frame where it meets the glass -- 1/4 of an inch at most, and that's probably way too big, so it'd be more like 1/8". Do your best, when smoothing the caulk with your finger, to push hard so that you leave a very smooth edge with almost no caulk left where the caulk, glass, and tape interconnect -- the tape's mostly to catch the globbage that always happens on one side or the other. Then pull the tape off immediately and it removes the need to re-smooth things. You want to make sure there are no bubbles in the caulk; these will let moisture and mold behind the caulk.


Light trips circuit breaker when connected to box

In this picture the black wire looks damaged right as it comes out of the fixture.  In other pictures you can clearly see that one of the mounting screw holes has electrical burn marks on it.

Because of the scorching, we know that one way or another, the hot side of the circuit found a path to ground through the fixture.  This is either because the wire going into the fixture is damaged, or something else is wrong.  If it was internal to the fixture, the ground wire should be causing the breaker to trip immediately, so I'm still thinking it's a damaged wire.

Warning - if the fixture trips the breaker when it's installed in the box, that means the entire fixture could be electrified when it's turned on.  Don't even touch the fixture when it's turned on.  I would make sure the breaker, not just the switch, is turned off before touching anything at all.


Ended up creating a bridge under the subfloor gap using a 2x8 that sits on a 2x4 sistered to the nearest joist. I used construction adhesive and screws to attach both subfloors to the bridge. There is no longer any bounce in the floor.


How can I move a non load bearing wood frame wall?

If you have a reciprocating saw (aka "Sawzall") with a metal or demolition blade it should make short work of the nails.  Make your cuts at both ends of the vertical studs, between the stud and the header/footer.  Once the nails are cut the vertical studs should come right out.  You can probably just use a pry bar to pull off the header.


new construction wiring a mid-line receptacle to a switch

Normally the receptacle will be wired as in Fig. 1.  To control the receptacle with a switch, you should wire it as in Fig. 2.

Grounding conductors not shown

Notice that the switch is interrupting the "hot" wire.  Also notice that the white wire leading to the switch is simply capped off.  This is because code may now require that a neutral be present at switch locations. If this is not required for your installation, you can use two wire cable instead. If you use two wire cable, make sure you reidentify the white wire by marking it at both ends with black tape or marker.


Rough opening is too small for sliding patio doors

You’re better to go with Option C which you haven’t thought of. Those jack studs will need to be replaced as well.  Not sure about the codes where you’re at, but I’m not aware of any region that would allow you to scab on to the top of the jacks to fill in the gap between them and the header.  Everywhere I’ve built in my 25+ years in the industry requires a solid mechanical connection between the header and bottom plate, which is also sistered to the king studs.
You’ll need to build a temporary wall as close to the opening as possible to carry the weight while you work. Then remove the header and both jacks, and redo everything to be the right height.
In the future, you’re better off making rough openings taller when you’re not sure about the needs of a particular door or window.  You can even put your header all the way up to the top plate and have your cripples come down to a 2x4 (or 2x6 depending on your studs) nailer.  Either way you do it, the header carries the load across the door/window.


What is the "required" amount when using Plumber's Putty

You only need a enough to cover the ring area and keep the flange from leaking.  It really depends on the depth of the offset space and how your flange fits into it.

I think normally I would probably lay down 1/8 inch.  However I have ran across some new modern bathroom sinks where I used 1/4 inch because the ring was deep.

Yes.  It sounds like your application was the perfect amount.  You really should have a slight amount come out on tighten.  If you don't then you don't know if you have enough.  If a lot comes out then you run the chance of not being able to tighten enough and getting dribble leaks.  If you have too little and there are no leaks then you will still have a "crack" around the flange where water pools.  Might never leak but isn't attractive.
You have to tighten the ring to test for leaks.  Once the ring is tighten it is permanent.  If you untighten the ring then you could cause the putty to move and introduce a leak.  Often if you untighten you have to reputty.

Also I want to note two small things.  #1 - Do not use rubber/plastic gaskets instead of plumber's putty.  These are now included in a lot of kits.  First sometimes they fail right away.  Second the material can break down and it can fail in near future.  Plumber's putty isn't perfect but it is much much more reliable (also don't mix plumber's putty with these gaskets).  #2 When you apply your plumber's putty you want a little squeezing out - you should get a little squeezing out all around the circle.  If you get a lot on one side and none on the other I would start over.  The amounts squeezed out don't have to be perfectly symmetrical but you don't want to see none in an area.


what are these two things in my basement and can they be used to add a bathroom

One is a water meter on your main supply that can be read remotely.
The other looks like a drain access plug in case you ever need to run a snake down the pipe.


Can I put the unused blue wire in the C port, while still having the existing wire there?

Yes. It's not exactly code compliant (as far as NEC goes), but it is an accepted practice in the HVAC industry.  Notice that there are two wires on the Y terminal.

I believe this question has been asked a few times before, so may get closed as a duplicate.


GFCI outlets - can they be repaired? Are they really needed at the end of a circuit?

Not worth the risk
GFCI (whether in receptacles or breakers) are sensitive, life safety electronic items. As such, you don't want to mess with them. In fact, the whole purpose of the TEST/RESET buttons is because they can fail, even without obvious problems such as a flood. Newer models even test automatically.
Is it possible that there is simply still water inside the GFCIs so that disassemble, dry, reassemble will work? Yes. Is it a good idea to try that? ABSOLUTELY NOT!
New basic GFCI receptacles are in the $15 - $20 range (varies depending on brand, 15A vs. 20A and other features). Not as cheap as plain receptacles, but not that big in the grand scheme of things.
Presumably the GFCI receptacles were installed because the particular locations - basement, bathroom, laundry room, etc. required them. Assuming that is the case, replacement with plain receptacles would be a code violation. In most places you are not required to upgrade to GFCI unless you are making changes, but downgrading doesn't make sense and is likely a code violation.
Panel Alternative
An alternative is to install GFCI breakers in the main panel. This has the disadvantage that your panel may not have room for GFCI, or if you have a very old panel or fuses instead of breakers then that is not even an option. These breakers also typically cost more than "ordinary breaker" + "GFCI receptacle" so this change would be for practical reasons (e.g., protect outside circuits where a GFCI receptacle would be subject to severe weather) or as part of a panel upgrade. If you are looking at simple cost, replacing the GFCI receptacles where they are currently located will almost certainly be the way to go.
Check Out Everything Else
As Harper noted, there are plenty of other concerns as well. This is one situation where DIY may really not be enough. You could have hidden damage that can come back to burn you (literally) when you least expect it. Professional evaluation of the entire electrical system that was underwater is worthwhile.


What to look for in buying laminate flooring

Great question! My wife and I were examining laminate flooring a little while ago too. Not all of them are alike -- here are some things to consider.

Check the warranty. Cheaper laminate will usually have a shorter warranty with more conditions (e.g. 10 - 15 years only protecting factory defects).  More expensive laminate will usually cover more conditions for a longer time (e.g. 25 years+ covering factory defect, normal wear and tear, fading, staining, denting and water resistance).  Keep in mind that these are examples -- every manufacturer is different.
Find out details of how a sample is made A lot of laminate flooring is now treated with Aluminum Oxide which protects it against scratching and denting. More expensive laminate may have more coatings.  If you're expecting heavy foot traffic or have animals with nails, you might want to take it into consideration.  For answers to questions like this, you might need to contact the manufacturer directly.
Thickness varies Laminate thickness can vary anywhere from 5mm to 12mm.  The thicker laminate can feel more stable and supposedly be less likely to have problems with humidity changes.
Joint integrity varies Not all laminate flooring interconnects in exactly the same  way.  Some joint connections can withstand weight and water leaks better than others.  Name-brand manufacturers claim to have more experience with this. Be sure to check how the pieces fit together.

-M


Are there any issues connecting Neutral and Live at once to the supply line?

Your circuit diagram looks perfectly safe.

A two pole isolator is often used where the need is to make a circuit safe to work on, not simply to turn off the power.

Earth should not be switched, your diagram looks correct.

Disclaimers  As always, check the law and codes in your country. You might need to have a professional certify it safe. There will be rules about the type of wire, termination, labelling etc. The body of the 2-pole switch should also be earthed, and the earth cable should run in the conduit between them, not taking a short cut. The power should run through the switch, not there-and-back. You are probably not allowed to fasten the cord of a portable device to the wall in any way, or run it under a carpet or floor.  You're probably not allowed to mount a hand tool in a permanent way. I can't tell you that your system is safe, but the electrical concept is not dangerous.


How do I cap off an unused refrigerator water line?

The water line to the fridge is most likely 1/4" OD tube (either copper to plastic). It would connect to the fridge with a 1/4" Compression by 3/8" Male Iron Pipe Thread adaptor. If this is the case, when you go to remove the line from the fridge, loosen the compression nut until the tube can be removed from the adaptor fitting. The unscrew the adaptor fitting out of the fridge. Reconnect the tube to the adaptor fitting and screw a 3/8" threaded brass cap onto the end that was connected to the fridge. Use a little pipe dope or teflon tape on the threads. Turn the water back on and inspect the joints for leaks. Tighten as required if there is any drips but be carful not to over tighten the compression nut.

If this in not the case with your fridge, pull it out and take a picture of what you find.


Adding outlet to 4-way light switch circuit

Yes, that's the only way to do it. You need an always hot and a neutral and the fixture is the only place where you can get them. You would pigtail the black and white  wire at the yellow wire nut and pigtail the white neutral before it connects to the light. Are you sure there's not another circuit or outlet that you could feed your new outlet from? Also, the white wire at the fixture and into the first box from the fixture should be taped with any color but green, or white, to indicate an always hot feed. Black is a good color since most people have black electrical tape. It's also a good idea to tape the travelers with yellow tape for easy identification in the future.


If you were to attach something similar to the end of the wire such as a hex nut that would not easily slip off then you could make up a remote noose on the end of a long stick that looks like this.

(proverbial back of envelope sketch)

Aim the stick down into the tight corner of the attic and lower the noose over the end of the wire with the hex nut. Then securely pull the noose string to capture the wire and pull the stick toward you along with the speaker wire.


How repair a joint that should have been joined by screws

Where the gap is forming you may be able to you put a couple 90° angle brackets on the inside and then use lag screws or construction screws to hold it together. First screw should go on the side and then the 2nd to the back. I would first try to pull the wood back together if you can. The lag/construction screws may pull it together but I wouldn't expect it to given the size of the deck. I'd then go along and do this on a few other joists to ensure they won't pull out.


I want to remove a wall dividing my living room from my porch

You want to remove an exterior wall that is integral to the structure of the building so you will need to know how to provide a suitable, to code, way to support the load that the wall is carrying.
Suggestion:   Hire a Structural Engineer to tell you what is required.
You will need a structural engineer to size the correct beam and post system that will be needed to replace the wall.


Is it likely that water can enter below the slab?

There's typically a drainage system around the inside perimeter of the basement (perimeter drain), which feeds into the sump pit.  If the pump is not removing water, the drains will fill just the same as the pit.

Water always finds level, so if it's above the rim of the pit, it's also filled the drains.  So theoretically, water could seep in anywhere around the perimeter of the basement.

Once it's found a way in, it could fill the basement like a pool.