Is a 6x6 beam good enough for a span of 10ft

No. 6-by lumber hasn't been used for beams since the 60s or so (and it doesn't fit in your wall anyway). An engineer would specify something between a doubled 2x10 and a doubled 1-3/4" LVL (engineered lumber) beam, up to 12" nominal height, depending on the roof system.

If I was held to the fire for a guess I'd put in a doubled 2x12 in a U configuration with a flat 2x4 on the bottom. The primary factor is whether you have a full-span engineered truss system or a conventional ceiling joist configuration where they'll be carried by the beam.

Simply put, we can't say for sure from our desks what you need, but I can say that a 6x6 isn't it. They're for posts, not beams.

Also be aware that it's not uncommon for beams that long to have twin trimmers at each end. You may also need to block through the floor system to the wall or beam below as well, to prevent overstressing the subfloor at those concentrated load points.

UPDATE:

From the new photo it looks like that wall was open at one point already. The key question is whether the opening spanned the entire width of the header. Sometimes single headers are used with intermediate trimmers acting as posts.

I'd still remove everything up to the double top wall plates and install a double 2x12 header immediately below that, replacing the 2x6 header and resting on the existing trimmers.

Disclaimer: I'm making a number of assumptions here that aren't supported by adequate knowledge of your building. You should be consulting a local engineer, not a bunch of strangers on the interwebs. Take my advice solely as a presumed plan of action to be verified before completion.


A plumber left the job in the middle, how do I close out the job?

Make sure the plumber does not put a lien on my property for the full price.

Hire a lawyer.

  Get a refund of the money not used

See the answer to the first one.

Honestly, I'd tell the plumber to consider the payment you gave "paid in full for services rendered" and let it go. Life's too short to deal with shoddy contractors...


Add C wire for Thermostat to Goodman furnace

You should be able to connect to any of the blue wires, or to the chassis where the transformer is bonded. I wouldn't use the HUM  terminal, unless you've looked at the schematic and determined that it's connected directly to the transformer. If you include the model number, or a photo of the schematic.  We'd be able to tell you for sure.

If you're supplying an A/C unit contactor, the furnace circuit board, and an exhaust fan from this transformer. You may find that it doesn't have the power to also supply a thermostat. There may be no problem at all, but it's something to be aware of.


Drywall/Brick Transition - how to paint?

I think you'd have to support the drywall to make sure it does not flex. That would involve demolition, adding support that is evidently lacking now, and replacement; and may not be worth the effort.
Placing a molding over the crack to conceal it would be another approach.
Cutting it out to 1/4 inch wide and filling it with caulking as an expansion joint is a third option, but probably less appealing. You'd likely want to hide it, in which case you dont need to bother, you can hide the crack with molding, as mentioned just above.


Your condensate line may not have the proper pitch to allow the water to drain.
Another option is a condensate pump. These are little water pumps that pump the condensation water from the drip pan out through the tube. This can be wired to run while the A/C unit runs, or when water is detected.

Out of curiosity, where does your drain line end? At some point I think it is up to high and not allowing the water to fully drain or sagging once it fills with water, then stops the drain from draining.


Toilet flange concreted into floor, replacement?

You have several possibilities. My recommendation would be to cut the flange and install a new flange in side the cast pipe something like an oatey  43539  20$.

By cutting the old flange out this will allow the toilet at the same level as the previous one.

there are some thin metal repair flanges that fit over the existing cast but my experience with these is they do not last and cost 15$ the cost difference 5$.

I have also used a wire welder to repair a flange in the past where the flange was installed in the middle of a bend (directly welded no straight pipe at all) my option was to weld it up or cut the slab to repair and after grinding to clean metal I was able to weld it up sliding a piece of thick copper under it when done the copper slid out and I had a space to drill and tap new holes , so far this has held up for + 5 years.

There is always the least desirable option to cut the slab and replace using a fernco or “no hub” and change to plastic but the set and twist from oatey would be my option.


Finding the "C" Wire on old Honeywell L8048G Controller/Relay

It’s possible you don’t need a C (common neutral) wire when installing your Ecobee3. Check out the guide on using the Power Extension Kit that comes with your new thermostat: https://www.ecobee.com/faq/i-do-not-have-a-c-wire-or-common-wire-can-i-install-ecobee-residential-thermostats/


It may be difficult to get 2x4's to look good at 24" centers but if you hand-pick the studs you may get an acceptable result.

I don't think there are any codes for non-load-bearing walls. You get to do whatever you want.

Good luck!


How to wire isolation relay to create C-wire

You actually happen to have the relay oriented in your photo the same way the relay in the diagram is oriented.

W1 to terminal 1
C to terminal 3
Boiler T&T wires to 2 and 4


What type of wood should I use as an outdoor table top for a BBQ?

I would recommend something that is dimensionally stable, resistant to rot and easy to work, like cherry, chestnut or walnut - for an outdoor food preparation surface, any tight-grained hardwood will work. (See also the "Wood Picker" app)

Fine woodwork that's meant to be kept exposed to the elements should be protected with a marine-grade spar varnish. This requires a bit more effort and care to apply, and will require periodic maintenance - google "brightwork", which is the art of applying finish to wooden structures on boats. There have been entire books written on the topic, but here's an article to get you started.


How do I mount a new TV antenna to an existing antenna mast?

Maybe something like http://www.caworldwifi.com/images/T/univantmnt.jpg.  Clamp the bottom to the existing mast (or a leg) with u-bolts.  Then clamp antenna on the "mast" portion of the universal antenna mount?


What is this and can it be used to stop the flow of water?

Having replaced a couple of those before in my own home, I am virtually 100% certain it is a pressure regulating valve. You can tell from the bell housing on top that it is what I say it is. See that all the examples I've shown below show the same bell housing, with a bolt on the top, and even a metal tag hanging off that bolt.

While the bolt can be turned with a wrench to adjust the pressure in your house, this is not a water shut-off valve, nor would I try to use it for that purpose.

Note that the valve has seen some time since installation and trying to completely turn off the water using it, EVEN IF YOU COULD DO SO, will very possibly cause it to completely fail to do its job properly in the future, thereby causing yet a different plumbing problem to solve later.


Is there something that will completely cover two gangs of my electrical box below the drywall?

Code pertaining to electric junction boxes is pretty clear when it states boxes are to remain accessible and uncovered.


For Future Viewers:

No-one's forcing you get to R-anything, yet & it's coming people, but it's great that you want to. I'd call the Roofer back & get the leak fixed first. Whether you can get to the leak & don't fix it or cover it & never see the leak doesn't stop the leak or building rot.

However, you must (& I mean must) have joists below those rafters & they can even be built-up. Your idea is right, it's just not in the right location. Unless, your overall plans are to finish the attic.

If that's the case, then you don't need anything more than R-19 for that new segregated room's roof if you already have an R-38 done on the floor for the rest of the home's cap. Sure, more is better but not at the cost of Roof, Gable &/or Ridge Vents.

The roof's R-19 for a finished attic there would be best as just Polyiso boards with as much air space as you can give the roof to breathe. Literally board from the eave's venting all the way up to the Gables or Ridge to actually make a dedicated & drastically reduced venting highway for improved everything.


Can I vent portable air conditioner into the garage?

The problem with venting the AC into the garage is that you are then venting the garage into your workout room.  I'd worry about CO poisoning.  Garages are typically air sealed from the rest of the house to prevent and CO from moving from the garage into the house.
I can't imagine a damper that I would trust enough to vent the AC into the garage and take the risk.  You could mitigate a bit by install a CO detector in your workout room but I'd still go with the drill to outside through stucco.
Drilling through stucco isn't such a huge deal.
The other thing to consider is that by venting the house into the garage which is presumably sealed from the house, you can depressurize your house (depending on your make up air vents).  A depressurized house can result in back drafting from combustion appliances.  In new construction there is typically a sheet metal expert who runs that calculations and ensures there is enough make up air available.  This factor would be similar whether you vent into the garage or outside though.
While you aren't using the garage for your car you may be storing things in the garage that off gas - paints, gas, etc.  If you depressurize the house and pressurize the garage there will be a propensity for the garage to want to leak into the house.


Can an electric dryer be vented into a garage?

Dryer air is hot, but more importantly, it is very moist.  The high humidity might not be a huge issue when it's cold outside, but when it warms up, it could lead to mold or other moisture related issues.  Also, even though your dryer does attempt to catch lint on its internal lint screen, some dust is present in the exhaust air which will eventually cause a mess in the garage.


Was my approach to repairing stripped holes in a door jamb appropriate?

Paper towels and glue are both relatively weak. The best thing is wood plus glue. Fortunately most of us have some right sized pieces of wood handy in the kitchen:
Toothpicks
Clean the hole. Put in some glue. Stuff the hole with toothpicks (possibly dipped first in glue - depends on how big the hole is and how much glue oozes out as you stuff in the toothpicks). Cut off the ends sticking out of the hole. Let dry.
It is also a good idea to use longer screws if you can. But match the head of the existing screws so that the screws match the holes in the hinges.


Why is there cracked paint on my new plaster?

The cracking would imply a drying problem. I would think that the cornice was primed improperly. If the primer was of cheap quality or the painter used a paint with a built in primer for drywall. The primer may have not effectively sealed the plaster. Then the drying of the paint would be effected, basically the plaster sucking out the moisture to quickly. this could cause the paint shrink and crack as it dried.

Answer to comment.

You have to fill the cracks. either by sanding them out or filling them. If sanding isn't an option try coating an area with a light coat of mud and after it drys lightly wipe it smooth with a damp cloth. Then repaint starting with a good sealer, kiltz would probably do.

A type of self leveling paint might work without all the mud filling, but It depends on the size of the cracks. I would sample a couple areas to see what works best.

There are paints that claim to have this ability. I would still start with a good primer/sealer before anything.

Cashmere

This is not an endorsement of the paint only an example of what to look for. I have never used it.


How do I fix an irregular hole in my heater closet?

You'll need to square up the hole and do some careful measuring and cutting, but it can be done:

On the floor, mark a rectangle that encloses the existing hole.  Ideally, the two pipes would be parallel to an edge, but it's not essential.
Measure the distance from the two closest corners to each of the pipes.
On some plywood, mark a rectangle the same size as the rectangle you marked on the floor.
Add 1/2 the outside diameter of the pipe to the distances you measured in step 2.  Using a drawing compass, mark an arc with the appropriate radius from each of the corners.  Where two arcs intersect will be the center of the pipe.
Using the drawing compass, mark a circle the outside diameter of the pipe.
Mark a line across the width of the rectangle going through the center of the two pipes.
Start cutting: cut out the rectangle on the floor, cut out replacement rectangle, cut along the line through the center of the pipes (this needs to be a thin saw blade), then cut out the four semicircles.
Cut out the rectangle on the floor.
If you've got room under the floor, you can use some wood under there as strapping to help hold the replacement pieces in place.  If not, you'll just have to do the best you can with wood glue.
Put the two pieces around the pipes; they should be able to slide up and down.  Again, if there's room under the floor, use a piece of wood as strapping to hold them together; if not, glue and hope for the best.
Slide them down into the hole in the floor.  They should fit snugly into place.  Screw them into the strapping if you were able to install some, otherwise just glue them in place.


Mounting a Boiler when the studs are not 16 on center

Thanks for the clarifying edit.
Code is there to keep the structure safe. It doesn't care if the boiler falls off the wall. As long as you don't cut into structural components, like weakening studs, etc. any mounting solution should be fine on that front. Note that drilling into studs and attaching lag bolts is standard practice and should be fine.
As far as "issues" go, well…that's pretty open-ended. :) Sure, there could be issues if your solution isn't structurally sound. That said, a couple of boards spanning the distance which allow you to mount the plate to those shouldn't add much weight to the overall installation. So as long as you attach the boards using similar technique to what the mounting plate would have used (presumably lag bolts into studs), it should hold fine.
All that said, I'd recommend that you contact the manufacturer and ask them if they have a wider plate or other alternative mounting process. Adding boards to the wall is pretty easy, but it needlessly complicates the structure, and pushes everything an extra 1-1/2" from the wall. It'd be nicer to be able to put the plate right against the wall where it was intended to go. Manufacturers of wall-mount stuff often have optional components that they can provide to customers to allow installation in non-standard situations like this. It's always worth checking with them, in case they do.


The joint compound you used was either not mixed properly or had already dried out to some extent before you applied it.   It also looks like you exacerbated this by putting on a really thick coat.   (also I see the edges and I don't see tape nor joint compound... you mud the edges of your sheet first not the middle)
I personally would try to scrape as much of that off as possible.  Immediately.   If you leave it you will either:

Sand the crap out of it, chunks might come off, and if everything goes as well as possible you still have huge divots/lines.   You will then need to add a few (much thinner coats).

Just add more joint compound and push them into cracks.   They won't perfectly fill cracks and then after you sand for a long time it still won't be smooth.

What you should do...

scrape it off
only add joint compound to the area below mesh tape and a couple inches to each side
your joint compound should be consistency of a runny peanut butter (if you eat Nutella, like a new jar... not the crusty Nutella in an old jar).
after two layers around the tape you can try to add small, smooth layers to center... probably two more to get it right.   You can't just slop on the stuff in the whole area unless you are very skilled and are using a very loose/runny mix.


Can an electrical junction box be closed and covered if not needed?

Absolutely not. Any box containing splices or live wires, even if it's not being used, must remain accessible.


Duct and fan requirements for stove hood

I think the focus on the duct size and length is misleading here.  Duct size can matter if it is a severe restriction in the system, but a factor more likely to be a problem is that you are using a axial fan and not an centrifugal fan.
tl;dr

manufacturers specify flow rate for range hood fans at zero static pressure
at the flow you need, the fan will encountered a non-trivial amount of static pressure
axial fans do not achieve high flow rates other than at very low static pressures
accordingly, the manufacturer's specified flow rate for axial range hood fans is not a good indication of the flow rate you will experience once it is installed
centrifugal fans do achieve decent flow rates at static pressures typical in range hood installations and their flow rate once installed will be close but still lower than the manufacturer's specified flow rate
select a centrifugal fan for your range hood if flow rate is a concern

Your Installation's Resistance Curve
Each installation of a range hood will have its own resistance to the flow of air.  This will depend on the restriction of the entire air flow circuit.  The most common sources of restriction in that circuit are the following:

the make-up air path into the suite
the grill or screen in the air path above your stove
the fan assembly itself
the ductwork between the hood and the outdoors
the grill and backflow preventer where the duct exhausts outdoors
wind that opposes or aids the flow of air from the make-up air to the exhaust locations on the outside of the house (this often happens when the two are on opposite sides of a house's exterior)

Resistance curves plot the air pressure the fan will encounter versus the air flow that the fan is pushing.  A characteristic resistance curve follows an affinity law and is therefore parabolic in shape.
SC1 and SC2 in Fig1 are examples of resistance curves.  The two different curves emerge when something about the resistance of your installation to air flow changes.  For example, SC1 might be the resistance curve with a kitchen window open (less pressure required for the same amount of flow) and SC2 might occur with all windows close (it would take more pressure to achieve the same amount of flow).

Fan Curves
For a given RPM, each fan has its own relationship between the flow it produces and the pressure that has to overcome.  These are shown in Fig1 as curves N1 and N2.  The RPM of N1 is higher than N2 and, accordingly, it produces more flow for the same amount of pressure.
Determining the Flow Rate
The actual flow rate achieved is found at the intersection of your installation's resistance curve and your fan's curve.  So, in our example, with the windows closed and the fan at the higher RPM, this is the intersection of N1 and SC2 indicated on the plot as "B".  In HVAC engineering terminology, this intersection is called the "operating point".
How Air Flow is Specified for Range Hoods
Air flow of range hoods is specified at zero static pressure.  In Fig1, this corresponds to the flow rate where N1 and N2 cross the x-axis.  The specification provided by the manufacturer is not the air flow you will achieve once the fan is installed because there is no real-world situation where the static pressure encountered by the fan is zero.
The Type of Fan Substantially Affects the Fan Curve and Real-World Flow
You are unlikely to be able to obtain either a fan curve for a given range hood nor a resistance curve for your installation.  This is not a practical problem in selecting a fan.  That is because range hood fans are one of two general fan types each with a dramatically different capability.
Centrifugal Fans

Curves N1 and N2 are typical of a centrifugal fan in that they are able to create meaningful airflow despite static pressure encountered in the installation.
Axial Fans

Fig2 shows a third fan curve A1 which is typical of an axial fan in that it stops producing any meaningful flow at very low static pressures.
Qualitative Comparison
Note that if you were to look at the manufacturer's specifications for the centrifugal fan that has curves N1 and N2 it would be in the same ballpark as the axial fan with curve A1.
But look what happens when these two fan types encounter the resistance of your system with the windows closed (SC1).  The operating point of the centrifugal fan at the high RPM is shown at "B" while the operating point of the axial fan is shown at "D".
Note that the air flow of the axial fan when installed is only about 1/3 of the centrifugal fan despite the manufacturer's specifications for airflow being comparable.1
Note also that the airflow at the operating point is only about 1/4 of the manufacturer's specification for the axial fan, while it is more the 3/4 for the centrifugal fan.1

Epilogue: The Oft-Forgotten Makeup Air Path
Remember, each cubic foot of air that you exhaust has to be made up somewhere else in the house.  This might be an open window, your furnace's makeup path, the exhaust gases of a fireplace - yikes!, a backflowing bathroom exhaust fan, sewer gases sucked out of air admittance valves, etc.  When you have an operating centrifugal range hood fan specified at several hundred or a thousand CFM, you should have a good source of make-up air.  Otherwise, you might end up with unhealthy air from unexpected places being sucked into your home.
1 These ratios are for this particular hypothetical graph.  They are meant to be instructive about the magnitude of the difference between actual and manufacturer's specified flow rates.  By no means are these specific ratios generally applicable.  What is generally applicable, however, is that the flow rate for axial range hood fans drops off significantly faster with static pressure than for centrifugal fans.


Floor first.

Tile.  Cut out the the bottom of the drywall so that the tile can sit underneath it.

Throw some cardboard on top of your tile, sit tile board on tile and put it up.  Pull out cardboard.  Caulk the gap.  You are done and everything looks perfect.


What to do with concrete/cement runoff from cleaning tools?

Definitely not on the lawn! The water is caustic and can have a high pH value 10+ etc.

What I do is let the water settle. My process is as follows. I wash my mixer and tip the water into the wheelbarrow. Then I scrub the wheelbarrow and then tip the water into a rubber bucket. Then I wash the hand tools in this bucket, rinsing with a little extra fresh water into the same bucket.

So, now you have a pretty full bucket of dirty water. Leave it overnight (or longer). The solids will settle to the bottom and leave pretty clean water on the top. I usually tip this onto a gravel area if there is one (scrape back the top layer with your boot, pour and once it soaks in, push the clean gravel back over).

Then you're left with a third of a bucket of dry/set sand/cement mixture which you can scrape or knock out of the bucket and dispose of with your other 'hard' waste, brick off cuts etc.

Hope that helps.


What's the proper way to flash an inside roofing corner, with self-stick membrane?

Tar Paper or Membrane underneath, I've never found a single drop make it through metal flashing...that was replaced or re-faced with every new roof. If we're not talking about the slope being parallel with the wall & the slope is perpendicular throwing water at the wall, then definitely membrane as far & wide as you can under very tall & wide metal flashing.


Can I use #8 wire in a 15 or 20A circuit?

You're always allowed to use bigger wire

The circuit ampacity defines the minimum wire size needed.  If you have larger wire on hand, go ahead and use it.

For instance I often run single appliance circuits that demand a 15A breaker. However, I stock 10 colors of #12. I don't stock #14 at all because it's a useless and redundant wire size for me, I'd rarely use it. So the circuit gets run in #12 and breakered 15A.  It's a 15A circuit because it's breakered 15A.

Good to be self-aware of the impulse to always match wire size exactly to the breaker.  That is a false impulse.  There are actually several reasons to consider an upsize besides the one I use: distance, conduit crowding, and yeah, use of existing wire.

The splice must be accessible

One of the rules of splicing in conduit is the splice must remain accessible.  So there must remain a hatch cover which can be removed to get to that splice.  Even if there was not a splice, if it is a junction box or other pulling access, it also must remain accessible.

If you wanted to bury the old junction site, you would need to reconfigure the conduit so it was straight thru, without any stops, to the garage.  Then I would see if I could shift the #8 wire so instead of going from spa to panel, it goes from the garage to a point still inside the house where you could fit a junction box.  Then extend the #8 from there to the service panel so the whole run is #8.

Keep it metal

If the old conduit was metal, extend in metal of the same type.  IMC and Rigid conduit can be buried at 6" cover, which is pretty handy.  Otherwise you will be at 18". Those metal conduits are able to serve as the ground wire.  You need separate neutral and grounds, no bootlegging.


Can the last few boards of hardwood near a wall be glued if there is not alot of space for nailing

we just do the last few runs with 2in brad nails.  you can easily fill and hide the heads with lacquer sticks.  we put woodglue under every square foot of hardwood flooring we lay.  its not even a point of debate.  the wood will expand and contract with glue or without it.  its just a question of how soon you want the floor to squeak and cup.  wood glue prevents that almost entirely.


You'll need to use another transformer
Your control does not provide any access to the C terminal of the transformer, as per the ladder diagram in the manual.  As a result, you'll need to run something more than a 3-wire cable, with the new transformer connecting to Rc/C on the thermostat and the existing T-T terminal wiring connecting to Rh/W on the thermostat.


How long does screw have to be to anchor bookcase?

A really robust answer to this requires some idea as to whether the IKEA bookshelf is sitting on the floor or if it is meant to hang up on the wall with no support from the floor. For the case that you are proposing that there would be no floor support I would strongly suggest that you abandon that idea and stay with the unit sitting on the floor. This style of unit really needs good solid support under the vertical side panels.

You do not want to secure the BILLY bookcase by screwing through backer material into the wall. The back of these units is basically a paper board material that slides into some side grooves and gets a couple of nails at the bottom. It will not be a secure anchor point.

To prevent tipping from the wall you need to use the supplied bracket or a similar separately purchased item. It would look something like this:

The installation directions will show how to install the brackets in a way that they are attached to the wall using a user supplied screws. The screw should be a #8 or #10 size screw and penetrate the wall stud at least 1" to 1.5". Make sure to accommodate the thickness of the wall covering such as 1/2" drywall when selecting the screw length.


The firebox may be rated for solid fuel, but is the chimney constructed to handle the extra heat and the possibility of having a flue fire from soot and creosote deposits?

A natural gas flue is not a solid fuel flue. If the chimney construction was skimped on to save money, then no.

If your HVAC tech has inspected the chimney and found it up to proper standards, then maybe.


If you count the numbers of lights, fans and sockets in your home, and then count the number of circuit breakers assigned to those things, you’ll notice you have a lot more outlets than circuit breakers.
That’s because each circuit powers more than one outlet/lamp/etc.
How does that work?  Hot, neutral and ground go to an outlet point like a light switch.  And then, another hot, neutral and ground goes onward from there to another outlet.  That’s normal.  You walked right into the middle of that.
You were expecting to see 1 always-hot, 1 switched-hot and 1 ground going to your switch.  What you actually found was a supply always-hot; an onward always-hot; and a switched-hot.  And a ground.
The supply and onward always-hot wires should have been kept together.
I gather that since the light works, your loose, unaccounted for wire is the onward always-hot.  Where do we attach that?  With the supply always-hot.
If you have no idea which that is, it won’t hurt anything if you accidentally attached it to switched-hot - just at that point it will be switched.  Don’t leave it that way, the smart switch may not be strong enough to switch whatever it goes to.


Why would a bathroom emit an odor if pipes aren't clogged?

Sounds like you are smelling sewer gases. Two common ways those will come up drain lines are from a dry trap (make sure water has run in each drain within the past several months) or a failing wax seal under the toilet (you may notice water damage under the toilet when this happens, but not always). The other issue could be a blocked vent line which would result in gurgling in a drain when you use the plumbing elsewhere.


How wide should a workbench top's overhang be to accomodate clamp-on vises and work lamps?

That should generally be enough. If you happen to run into a vise or lamp that wants a little more, you could edge-laminate an additional buffer strip onto the bend in that spot.


The vinyl fence has proprietary hardware for attaching the panels. If you can determine the brand and source parts, I'm sure they'll have skewed connectors for you.
Otherwise, get your carpentry on. Rip the edge off a panel at a 45 degree angle using a table saw or a circular saw with a clamped board as a guide. Mount the uncut edge to the new post per the hardware manufacturer's instructions, and mount the cut edge to the existing post with countersunk corrosion-resistant screws. Optionally add vinyl screw caps to pan-head screws.
You've asked a broad question, so I'm only able to provide a general answer. If you like, revise your post with more detail and ask a more specific question.


Can I mount an over the range microwave in a cabinet?

Microwaves do require ventilation - there are typically cooling fans and airflow is required for them. Many "countertop" models include specifications for required ventilation when mounted in a cabinet.

If the "over the range" model you are considering also has a "range hood" function that might call for more ventilation, but even if not using that function some ventilation is required. I would suggest calling the manufacturer's technical support line and asking questions - I'd also suggest at least considering another model more suited to your actual use scheme, if it is one that includes a "range hood" function that would be of no use in your desired location.


What is an "indoor phone system" called?

As DMoores says, what you describe is called an intercom.

However there are at least two relatively low-cost alternatives.

Cordless Phones

Panasonic and other companies sell cordless phones in sets of two, three, four or more handsets. One handset plugs into your phone socket, all the handsets can make or receive normal phone calls. In addition any handset can call any other handset (they are numbered 1-4).

The base of the main handset (which connect to your phone socket) can optionally incorporate a digital answering machine. You can still use them in conjuncytion with an existing answering machine if that's what you want. An advantage of the built in one is that you can control the answering machine from any handset in the house (listen to recorded messages, delete them, etc).

In Europe (and probably everywhere else in the world outside the USA) the system now predominant is Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecomms (DECT) - I think there are other systems in the USA but you may also be able to buy a variant of DECT.

Panasonic probably have the best reputation among makers of these phones.

Home PBX

A basic home PBX can be surprisingly cheap. You only need one phone line to the outside world. You buy as a many internal handsets as you want (up to 6 or 8 depending on PBX) and wire up extension sockets in various rooms from the PBX. This works like an office system in that you dial 9 before making an outside call. You can configure them so that any extension can pick up an incoming call (if that's what you want). You can usually place restrictions of some extensions. The home PBXs I've used are about the size of a medium-sized hardback book.

I recommend the cordless phones - very small and convenient and don't require any wiring and don't need any extra services from your telco.


Can somebody identify this Moentrol valve?

As far as I can tell, what you have looks correct. It's very similar to the 3570 and that would require a 1225 cartridge.

However, I see that Lowe's (and probably most hardware stores) sells kind of a one size fits all cartridge by Moen for their older valves. The 1200E is most likely what you need.

1200E - Metal faucet - "Replaces single handle cartridges installed prior to 1990"
http://www.lowes.com/pd_27473-866-1200E___?productId=4750863&pl=1&Ntt=moen+cartridge

1225 - Plastic faucet - "Fits all Moen 1 handle faucets (excluding Posi-Temp and ExactTemp)"
http://www.lowes.com/pd_27375-866-1225___?productId=3133585&pl=1&Ntt=moen+cartridge

If it doesn't fit, don't forget that you can always return it and try the other. My guess is the 1200E, but it's going to be one of these two.


How do we replace an old 3-wire thermostat with a 4-wire one?

Run a new cable
If you want to add cooling, you're likely going to have to run a new cable. Depending on when and how the current cable is installed, you may be able to use the current cable to pull the new cable. If not, you may be able to fish the new cable along side the current cable.
Use an existing wire
The other option, is to repurpose one of the wires in the cable. The down sides to this approach are that it may not be supported by some control boards, and you won't be able to control the blower fan independently.
Before you decided to add A/C, your furnace thermostat relationship looked something like this.

You had a 3 wire cable that ran between the two, and that's all you needed. Now that you've decided to add A/C, the picture has changed a bit.

So now you need to find a way to connect the Y terminals, so your thermostat can tell the A/C when to turn on and off.  You could run a new cable with an extra wire; which is the more correct way to do it, or you can use an existing wire.  Start by disconnecting the wire from the G terminal in the thermostat, and connecting it to the Y terminal instead.  Next, do the same in the furnace.  Now you have a wire that the thermostat can use to tell the A/C unit when to turn on/off, but you're not quite done.  When the A/C comes on, the furnace blower needs to be on too, so the cool air can circulate throughout the house.  To accomplish this, you'll simply install a jumper between the Y and G terminals in the furnace.  Now whenever the thermostat sends the signal for cool, the furnace also receives the single to turn the fan on.

As stated above, if you do this the FAN setting on the thermostat will do diddly squat. You should also check with the furnace manufacturer before doing this, to make sure they support this configuration. Also, don't forget to shut off the breaker for the furnace before working on the furnace or thermostat.
More information on this solution; including a video, can be found in this answer.


What is sealing the edges of this footpath?

Looks like (just dirt actually) asphalt concrete expansion joint material. But it doesn't really matter what it is if it didn't come out a caulking gun. To insert an expansion joint you'd probably have to pull the first row of bricks up.

Google vulkem caulk if you want a way to easily do it and have something that will remain flexible for upwards of 20 years. Read the warning labels. This stuff works really well, which means it's very bad for you.


Can I have utility location done well in advance of a fence project?

Utilities, as a rule, are delighted to come out any time and mark locations. They would much rather avoid a problem instead of having to deal with an outage.
If they need to come out again, e.g. because the paint weathers away, they'll do that.


Does the Lutron Maestro C.L Dimmer Exist?

Give it about a month and it will be out.  Our company just had a meeting with our Lutron representative and it should be out real soon.  He did not give a date but I think they were waiting for Lightfair to make it official.

EDIT
I talked with the factory rep today and he said orders (on distributors level) are being accepted now and the C•L should be available for consumers in July.


Why do I need batteries to use solar when the grid is down?

This is an XY problem at the industry level.  Imagine some guy says "Design me a dimmer" and you design him an excellent triac dimmer, no big.  And then he goes "Cool, can you just tack on a VFD onto this thing?" Facepalm, not in any elegant or cost efficient way.

So it is with solar panels.  Everybody and their dog is selling 2007 tech, a solely grid-tied system because it's established, built at scale, and financial models are well established for sharing profits with the finance company, etc. etc.  They can build, sell and finance that all day all night. It's the cheapest way to get you in the door and talking about solar.  But they are selling system X.

Now, post-Sandy, there's the hue and cry to "bolt on" off-grid capability, in a manner compatible with dumb consumers.  They did it, but it's inelegant and pricey, like bolting a VFD on a triac.  The interlocking-for-linemen takes extra resources. I'd call it System XX.

For what you want, you want system Y.

And since you presumably don’t want to design every inch of it from scratch, we should grab out of the traditional "off-grid solar" parts bin.  That means a few minor concessions.

The inverters are simply too different

A grid-tie inverter needs to follow grid frequencies, take all its input power, and force it all onto the grid by pushing voltage as hard as necessary.

An off-grid inverter needs to generate its own AC frequency, take only enough input power to do the job, and provide only as much power as the loads are drawing.

These are dramatically different roles and one inverter doing both will be a costly engineering challenge. They do exist; there are "hybrid inverters" on the market capable of both.  Of course they are pricey and have their own system design requirements, not least batteries.  You are probably better off getting cheap commodity COTS inverters for each application.

That said,  your "No batteries whatsoever" plan is flawed.  There will be cases where you have loads simply too big for the panels themselves to carry, e.g. motors starting up.

An off-grid system, "plus"

This is where I want to raid the parts bins of the off-grid solar people.  The only thing that isn't out of their wheelhouse is the grid-tie inverter, but that's no big.

Their systems are violently battery-centric, for obvious reasons.  Because of this, there is no viable way to avoid it, but nobody says your battery can't be tiny. Last I checked, they sell used car batteries for $20, there ya go.

Now in the house, we have a main panel with the main breaker.  It has 2 breakers in it: The breaker to the grid-tie inverter, and the breaker to the subpanel.

The subpanel is where the magic happens. It has a $23 Siemens or Square D style "generator interlock" which backfeeds two breakers (one at a time). One side it's on utility, the other it's on "generator" (read: off-grid inverter).  Every load you ever foresee running off solar goes in this panel.  If you put every single load in your house in this subpanel, I won't tell :)

"Normal" operation involves the subpanel interlock in "Utility" mode, the off-grid inverter driving into nothing (shut it off), the charge controller instantly topping up the tiny battery, and diverting all solar power to "dump".  Dump then goes into the grid-tie inverter and is sold back to the power company.

"Power out" operation, you throw the interlock to "Gen", power up the off-grid inverter.   As the off-grid inverter draws to supply household loads, the charge controller diverts power to it as needed, blocking the rest of available current from the panels (since "dump" is a dead-end).  If a motor starts and pulls more than panels can deliver, then we see how good or big  your battery is.

And, if experience shows you it's advantageous to have a real battery, you can get one.

Note that in all cases, power flow is one direction only, and nothing ever reverses flow. That is a huge advantage over the "System XX" type setups, which flow power every which way, and need to "bolt on" elaborate, expensive interlocking systems to avoid backfeeding. Here, backfeed protection is a plain interlock, except for the grid-tie inverter which is UL 1741 compliant; you can't find a grid-tie inverter that isn't.

The whole system is cheap, scungy, simple, bottom-tier tech.  That's not to say "don't use good stuff" - yes, of course use Morningstar or Midnight Solar charge controllers. But we're using their standard boilerplate gear, not special-purpose exotica.

Of course, if you want to phone up one of the finance-- I mean solar installation companies, they aren't going to be conversant in a simple system like this.  They won't want to build a thing like I describe here; they've got a standard package they sell over and over that they know how to build.

As far as panels

Many panels sold today have built-in grid-tie "micro-inverters", so their output is 120/240VAC and they drop out if the grid fails. Cheap way to comply with NEC 690.12 Rapid Shutdown, but totally useless off-line.  There are other panels with smarts on board, too.  You want plain Jane run-of-the-mill DC output panels, again, the cheapest thing on the market.

There's also the law to contend with. Roofs have a super important job, and I'm no fan of compromising that with a bunch of holes. Many other places on your property would benefit from shade/snow sheltering, so I say "build freestanding racks over your parking spot etc."  But if you do roof-mount, you have to comply with 690.12:

If your panels are <30V (i.e. common "12 volt"/19V float panels), you need do nothing.
If you add a fireman's switch and relays, you can series-stack them to 80V per segment, and series-stack those segments to anything you please, but much over 80V starts putting you out of bounds for cheap, common off-grid charge controllers.  Note the relays can be powered by a <30V solar panel :)

All in, or all out

Panels aren't just panels anymore.  Many have embedded electronics (like microinverters) to "help out" the installer.  As such, there's no halfway anymore. You can't just let these people install what they please and expect to hack it later: you might, but you're relying on luck. So you really are at a courageous crossroads; you have to jump all-in, one way or the other.

Accept exactly what they install,  as a turnkey system that you won't modify ever, and pay the bill.
Take control of the process, do the research, and spec everything yourself soup to nuts.  You're responsible for the result, but you also have the flexibility to do it your way, and you get the best prices by far.  And no financing.


The RGB controller's output is only relevant to the 3-color LED section.   Per 60 LEDs, they use 0.4A per channel (1.2A total).  48 watts is 4 amps.

So if your strip is less than 10 feet long you should be within limit of that controller.

If you are near or exceed the limits of that controller, you can add a device called an amplifier in between the controller and the LEDs. The same controller can power several amplifiers if needed. At that point, the controller's output is no longer used for power, but merely as a signal to the amplifiers.  So if the signal has some distance to go, it can travel on thin thermostat cable instead of heavy cable.

You will not be able to use the RGB controller to dim the monochrome strips.   It will not do what a person expects, unless they know a lot about RGB blending, which your guests won't.

Also keep in mind these cheapie LED dimmers are not intended for use as on/off switches, and will leave components energized even in the "full off" position.  Not something you want to do.  Aside from being a fire risk, it will be a considerable vampire load 24x7, which will drive up your energy costs.

The better way to think of dimming is as a fine adjustment after the switch.


Extractor fans not working with LED bulbs?

The fan controller is monitoring the lamp circuit to know when the lamp turns off. It seems as though it relies on a low-resistance path to neutral through the lamp filament to run the timer.

The LED lamps have fancier electronics in them so there may not be a direct path to neutral if the electronics is not running.


Why won't my propane boiler's pilot stay lit after replacing the thermocouple?

If the thermocouple is new, and we assume that it's good, then I'd wonder if it's positioned correctly? I don't know how your boiler is, with some of them you can re-position the TC with respect to the pilot, and it might be too far away.

On a similar vein, are you sure it's locked in place and can't move? For instance, if it could vibrate around a bit, it might be moving too far away and therefore getting confused and cutting the gas.


How can I wire 7 outdoor posts correctly?

Since you are planning on using PVC conduit (this is different than PVC pipe) I would use thwn wire, (most thhn wire is dual rated as thwn or for use in a damp wet location).  You would run your conduit to each fixture and daisy chain all the fixtures. I have seen folks run 1 pipe up and 1 back down to make the wire pull easier but I just use a T and 1 pipe to each fixture both methods are legal I think a single pipe looks cleaner.


Can I attach wall studs directly to sleepers on the ceiling joists for an angled climbing wall?

You can attach the joists (studs) directly to the sleepers. The point of using a top plate (not actually a header) in the design you shared is probably to...

Reduce the number of sleepers required
Distribute load more effectively
Provide top edge backing for the wall sheathing

Regarding your second question, you could probably screw the angled studs directly to the vertical studs, but you'd lose any load-bearing benefit from joist hangers, and you'd lose the load-distributing quality in the horizontal ledger/plate. You also eliminate the possibility of putting drywall or sheathing behind your climbing wall without dealing with all those framing penetrations.


How to make IN swing french doors OUT swing?

To do what you ask, is not a practical thing to do. First off, the inswing door panel is made differently than an outswing door since one has to be exposed to the weather directly and the other does not. Secondly the sill is configured differently too.
I have seen situations where an inswing door was simply turned around and set, removing the trim on the outside and setting back in place on the "new" outside. If this is done, it needs a small roof built over it to protect the top of the door and keep the weather from hitting the sill so rain does not simply roll in under the door


Choosing a power supply, breaker amperage and wire size for a 220V welder

US Power grid?

Is it correct to plug it into a 15A circuit is easily answered by the manual.

What is the input current listed in the manual or on the Welder dataplate?

And 220V will only come from a 15A circuit if your house has one wired (NEMA 6-15 or L6-15 Socket) to an appropriate ganged circuit breaker and the welder has that plug installed.

DO NOT CHANGE THE PLUG ON THE WELDER!!!

Have the appropriate circuit installed to match to what the welder expects for input voltage and current if you do not already have it available.

Given past experience, it will be 220V and a 30A or higher circuit with appropriately sized wire for current and distance to the socket and matching ganged 220V circuit breakers. Ampacity charts need to be consulted.

NEMA power sockets to help identify what your SMAW welder is expecting for input current.

NOTE: While the NEMA 6-15 and NEMA 6-30 look similar, the 30A plug is larger in diameter.


Knee brace alternative to support 12' 2x4 span for single tree treehouse

This is what we ended up doing.
Took the center link brackets off of JD tractors and bolted them to the base of tree with lag bolts. Used 2x6's to brace the corners. Have had a large group of people up there and has no sag.


Both of your plans will work to keep water out for a while. I would trench to a lower area and use some rock it will act as a drain, the only problem will be after years of use it may plug with soil, grass clippings and other organics but if I'd dosent freeze it will work until then. A bump that is sealed will stop water but you don't want standing water there it will rot out the wood. Try the gravel first hopefully you have some grade away from the house and the gravel will make a nice drain.


Making a square - Joining two pieces of wood cut at 45 degrees with a circular saw

You need to adjust your circular saw to an actual 45 degree angle, not to where the scale markings say '45'. Your speed square will do the trick.

(Or redesign for butt joints and skip the bother of a circular saw for 45s like that...)

edit to add, I tend to avoid cuts like this with a handheld circular saw because they are hard to do well, but you can improve the cut by concentrating on keeping the large part of the shoe (aka sole/deck) flat on the wood, and using something like your speed square to guide the saw to a smooth 90 degree cut.


Gas dryer vent install, how close to wall?

Given that the dryer vent pipe typically goes through the wall without any special consideration, touching the wall surface should also be fine. Unlike other combustion appliances, the dryer exhaust is diluted with a great deal of additional air. If it's hot enough to scorch your wall, it's hot enough to scorch your clothes.


Well pump isn't functioning after chlorination shutdown

When I have had submersible pumps fail they have always tripped the overload or breaker. If you have a pump controller the start capacitors may be bad but this usually blows a fuse in the controller and you would not have power on both legs if 240V. Try turning the pump power off for 30 minutes if it is over heated it may reset if it has a thermal overload on the pump. Then try toggling the power on and off several times to get the pump to try and start. If it starts you should be prepared to replace the pump because once they start failing to start with good capacitors (if it has them) it wont last long.


How can I turn the light off on my fujistu halycon split unit

Black electrical tape over the light.  Two layers if it is especially bright.


Yes, but it depends on the skill of the taper. (Some drywall hangers only cut one side of the sheet and literally break the other paper face with a violent snap.) Slightly ragged cuts are not a concern, as they'll be moistened when joint compound is applied and flattened when paper tape is pressed on.

If you're truly concerned about certain areas, take a utility knife with a new blade and slide it along the joint at a 45 degree angle, shaving off the edge of the paper along the cut.


OK, the female spade connector on the red wire is fried. If there's enough slack in that wire, you can cut off the connector and burnt wire. Go to an appliance repair store to get a match on the old connector. You could probably find similar ones at your home store but the ratings might not be the same and you'd also want a shrink tube. These connectors are crimped on so if you don't have a crimping tool buy one or have the repair guy at the store crimp it on and shrink the tube.
Now the bad news. It looks like the problem started in the white terminal block where the rivet is attached to the male connector. This is where the arcing started and heated up the entire connection. The inside of that block is probably damaged beyond repair and would have to be replaced too. Getting parts might be a problem.
If you decide to dump the whole thing, most counties/townships have local dumping stations where you can drop off old electrical appliances for recycling.


This is a PSC (permanent split phase capacitor motor) that has two windings that together produce the rotating field. One is fed through the run capacitor, so that the current through it is out of phase with the other winding. They are normally wired as below. The connection between the capacitor and the  neutral side can be either internal to the motor, in which case 4 wires come out, or external, so that there are 3 wires, and the cap is commoned elsewhere.

To reverse these motors, you need to reverse either one of these windings, which would require a two pole changeover switch, so specifically reversible motors are connected a little differently.

(picture from here) On these motors the two windings aren't differentiated 'main' and 'auxiliary' as is normal - the auxiliary is usually a higher resistance which allows the main winding, which takes more current to use more of the available space. The windings are identical, and the cap is connected between them. Imagine that the white wire on yours is connected to the 'L' terminal on the first diagram, and the red and black at the two right hand corners. That way, whichever one the switch connects to becomes the main, and the other the auxiliary, which reverses the sequence of the field.

For single direction, you just need to connect up the white, and whichever of the red or black produces the right rotation, and leave the other side of the cap connected to the motor winding and nothing else.


Well drilling stucco may fracture it and allow leaks but you have a brick wall behind this so that rule is not quite the same as stucco over wood frame. When I have to drill or cut stucco I use concrete bits at a fairly high speed not a hammer drill hammer drills break it up and catch the mesh making a bigger problem. The higher speed makes a lot of dust and usually easily cuts wire mesh (not expanded metal mesh) once you have your holes fill them with silicone sealer then put your screws in the pressure pushes the sealer into the cracks, if I see any cracks I will use a grout sealer above and around the hole.
For stucco with expanded metal do not drill it will have very bad results. I usually use a masonry blade and cut a hole normally for a box, but the masonry blade will cut the stucco and will cut the metal but the metal will Accelerate blade wear have a few extras. Grinding a cut line works best but cracks can radiate from the cut. Again a grout sealer liberally applied helps to seal cracks if the cracks are large fill with paintable silicone sealer and make sure to texture the surface nothing looks worse than a smooth line when a coat of paint is used to cover and final seal. In both cases. I really have not had problems with high speed and wire but expanded metal the drill bit will grab and pull you in creating huge fractures 1/4” wide up to a foot away, with cutting in a box I move from side to side to keep from over heating  and had the best luck with that and the thinnest masonry blade I can find I have used angle grinder and a skill saw more control with a skill saw but normally for a larger box. Those are my tips hope they help.


Your walls ,because of the year you stated it was built are probably plaster. Plaster walls use lathing as an attachment under the plaster , but I don't see this as the problem you are encountering when securing accessories to the wall. I'm thinking that while drilling the wall in the bathroom: 1) you may have encountered a cast vent/waste pipe beneath the wall or 2) it could be a pipe or electrical wire protective plate that are installed when a wire or pipe are installed through a wall stud. Either of these would explain not being able to drill an opening. The first thing to be sure of is the material of the walls. Try to drill a small opening in an unobtrusive location ( down low and in a closet). You should see grainy course sand ejected as the bit pierces the wall.


Do I really need dedicated 20 amp circuit?

Code requires us to follow the MFG instructions per NEC 110.3.B .
Could there be issues using a circuit with multiple receptacles?
Possibly; additional splices or receptacles wired to code might create issues with devices that draw the maximum allowed amount if 1 screw or wirenut is not completely secure. This can create a high resistance connection where it may start arcing. Arcing can damage sensitive electronic components, so even without having anything else plugged in the multiple receptacles could be an issue, even if rare.
Because the instructions state it requires a dedicated circuit, a licensed electrician could not advise you otherwise.


Is it safe to replace a Furnace pressure switch with a different one?

The documentation for your furnace, calls for a switch rated at 0.90" wc.  Using a switch with a lower rating, means that the switch may be closing without the proper inducer air flow.

If you called the tech out because the furnace was not working, you may have a problem that was preventing the switch from closing.  By putting in a different switch, the tech might just be ignoring a big problem.

There are three main reasons that a combustion air pressure switch would not close.

Obstruction/restriction of the air intake.
Obstruction/restriction of exhaust.
Backed up condensate.

Pressure switches can go bad. However, they are more often than not an indicator of a problem, not the problem itself.

I'd call the company, tell them your concern, and ask them to send out a different tech to fix the problem.

It's possible that this is a legit remedy, since you say the new switch is only connected to a single port on the unit.  This means that, instead of reading the pressure differential across the inducer. The new switch is reading the difference between the pressure inside the unit, and atmospheric pressure.  I was not able to find any documentation on this type of substitution from Lennox, so I'm not sure if it's an approved fix or not.


foam roller vs brush for fiberglass door

Use a smooth foam roller, maybe sand and second coat, then buff. But yes spray would be better.


How can I protect a shed floor from ground moisture?

I've built several such sheds in a climate that's quite moist and humid in summer. My strategy is to frame the floor with treated lumber, as you've done, then overlay either poly sheeting or house wrap, stapling it to temporarily hold position. You'll need to add some lumber around the perimeter to carry the floor along the walls, so do that first.
For flooring I've used untreated SPF tongue-and-groove plywood, which I give two coats of quality urethane after installation. This is mostly to protect against moisture draining from snow equipment and lawn hoses. I would not use OSB since it's more susceptible to moisture swelling and delamination in wet scenarios. OSB would be fine for the walls.
The first shed lasted 15 years with no serious degradation of the floor. The second one is about 3 years old and doing well. If you wanted to go the extra mile, sealing all sides of the flooring boards before installation would probably do some good in the second and third decades of the shed's life.


Timed Light that turns ON every 30 minutes, press button to turn off

Easy peasy.

Get a common, mains-rated 30-minute rundown timer - the kind of thing you see on bathroom fans or heat lamps.

Except look for a special version of this which is either "Normally Closed", "NC" or "SPDT".  You might have to hit up Galco or Grainger for this.

If you get the kind that is mechanical, it wires up like a plain old light switch. And that's exactly what you do; you wire up the switch and light exactly like a light switch circuit.

If you wire it as a "switch loop", I'll admonish you to obey NEC 2011 and provide a neutral wire.  (I.e. Use /3 cable in the switch loop). That is because there are many other ways to solve this problem, and almost all of them will call for a powered device that will require neutral.


How can I support a desk without legs or brackets

This is a pretty standard construction for floating shelves/counter top.

 mount a cleat to the walls (the third wall is omitted for clarity sake). In this example it's a 1x4 but that will depend on how much weight it needs to bear.
 Create a torsion box leaving a socket around the edges to accept the cleat.
 mount the unit and apply a backsplash to cover the gap where the back and sides meet the wall. It's not impossible to scribe in a three sided surface but it's a tremendous pain in the neck.

I would recommend MDO over MDF as it has the strength to weight ratio of plywood but the surface of mdf. As for the thickness w.r.t the strength of the front edge... this is really pushing the limit of what you can support without a leg or integral steal beam and not experience serious deflection or failure.


How do I secure wiring in an exterior electrical box?

What you see is very common, no RX connector. I think you will find that a common $0.50 3/4 inch romex (NM) connector will screw directly into the treads of the knock out.

Simply remove the tork nut and thread the connector into the box hole threads.  This will work fine with the back hole since your going to seal the box to the wall with silicon.  If you were to use the side, top or bottom knock outs, or not otherwise give the opening a water tight seal, you would have to use water tight connectors for the wire size.( rubber insert for 12/2, 14/2 UF/NM Etc.


Control a light turning on from multiple switches, but not off

Here is a quick sketch of some light switches connected in parallel:

If any switch is on, the lights are on. If all the switches are off, the lights are off.
Querent has not responded to requests for clarification of his purpose, but it's not impossible to imagine a use case for this circuit. Suppose the garage is used by several parties, who don't always know when others are present and using the lamps. With a "multi-way" circuit, someone leaving the garage might turn off the lights, leaving other users in the dark.
With the parallel switches, each user must turn on a switch when entering the garage, even if the lights are already on. This insure that he will not be left in the dark when he is the last one there. On leaving, each user must turn off the switch that he turned on when entering. (If the lights go off when he does this, then he knows he was the last one out, not that it matters.)
For completeness, here is what the "multi-way" circuit looks like:

with two "3-way" switches and two "4-way" switches.
Now, following the comment by Harper, a future owner of the property might want to convert to the multi-way behavior instead. Querent could facilitate the conversion by using the switches required for the multi-way, but using only the SPST functionality of each switch, and wiring them in parallel. Like this:

This saves the future owner buying new switches, but must be carefully and thoroughly documented or else it will be worse than useless.


What should I do about old cables that have been damaged?

Repair

You can use a cable jacket repair tape, to repair the jacket. I would not use simple electrical tape to make the repair, since it has a tendency to dry out and fall off.

Scotch® Cable Jacket Repair Tape 2234

  Repairing Damaged Cable Jacket When No Portion of Cable Jacket is Missing

  Abrade the cable jacket 3" (75 mm) beyond each side of the damaged cable jacket section

  Wrap one half-lapped layer of Scotch® Cable Jacket Repair Tape 2234 extending at least 2" (50 mm) on each side beyond the damaged cable jacket

  Starting 1" (25 mm) past the Scotch® Cable Jacket Repair Tape 2234, apply 3 half-lapped layers of Scotch™ Super 33+™ Vinyl Electrical Tape to each end to temporarily secure the ends of the Scotch® 2234 tape to the cable jacket until the tape reaches full bond.

  Instructions

NOTE: Other products do exist.  The products listed above are for example purposes only. I do not recommend or endorse the above listed products.

Replace

If the section is accessible at both ends, you could simply replace the section of cable.


If I use (2) 3/4" inlet PEX manifolds (hot/cold), do I need 1" PEX supply from the meter?

There are lots of factors, but the short answer is probably not.

Pressure loss is based upon distance and flow rate. 3/4" pex loses 20 psi per 100 ft at 10 GPM. That's quite a bit of loss, but typical city water pressure is 60-100 psi, and 10 GPM is a high flow rate for typical uses in a house (excluding lawn irrigation). How far is it from the meter to the manifold? From the manifold to fixtures? Are there more than 2 stories in the house? In typical scenarios you'll probably have less than 100 ft from meter to manifold, and maybe 10-40 ft from manifold to fixtures.

Most fixtures have flow limiters, like showers and sinks, or designs that limit flow, like ice makers, dish washers, and toilets. All of those will typically be limited to around 1-4 GPM. The only common appliances that will flow more than that are washing machines and hose bibbs. Even then, the 1/2" tubing running from the manifolds to the individual fixtures will limit flow. 100ft of 1/2" pex has a 40+ psi pressure drop at 6 GPM, limiting wide open flow to around 6-7 GPM. The 100 ft of 3/4" pipe feeding the manifold will only experience an 8 psi pressure drop with that 6 GPM wide open flow on one fixture.

If your manifold is next to your water heater, and there should be less than 10 ft of pipe between the cold manifold and the hot manifold, all 3/4", 8 psi of pressure drop on the cold side will lead to a similar 8-9 psi drop on the hot side, but you'll still have plenty of pressure on both hot and cold sides to feed a shower. So, start with 75 psi city supply, turn on a garden hose, and still have 67 psi cold and 66 psi hot at the manifolds.

Situations that would need larger line from the meter are very long runs, like 500 ft from meter to manifold, very large demand fixtures, like a sprinkler system that doesn't have its own line from the meter, or multiple branches from the main line where friction loss could add up. If you had a large house with 2 water heaters and separate manifolds far apart, a large demand at the first manifold combined with pressure losses getting to the second manifold could justify a larger main line.

There are also online calculators and estimators to size pipe based on fixture units or direct GPM flows if you want to really dive in or you have a unique scenario.


I Don't know how I can I make my kitchen sink drain down pipe intersect with the "p" trap?

Sounds like you need to install a new P-trap. Cut it off past the trap and then re-plumb in the correct spot. You may be able to use the old P-trap depending on where you need to cut, how it's glued, etc, but without a picture that's impossible to judge.

Be sure when you cut it that you'll be able to get a new fitting on the end, that usually means at least 3/4" pipe sticking out into the cabinet space.

Dry fit the entire assembly first, including the tailpiece to the sink, and only glue it once it's all in place.

There are P-traps with unions on one end that can help if the fit is tight, and regular unions (or slipnuts) are also sometimes necessary.


Adding a light fixture to an existing fixture

The method for adding a new light fixture to come on when the old one does is this: You do not disconnect any of the existing wires (except temporarily while working on it). You add wires only, connecting one screw on the old fixture to one screw on the new fixture, and the other screw on the old fixture to the other screw on the new fixture. This is called connecting the fixtures in parallel. Any method that does not connect the fixtures in parallel will not work.

Now -- exactly how you connect these screws together depends on what your fixtures look like, where power is supplied to the old light circuit (at the fixture or at the switch), and where (in what country and state) you live.

I strongly recommend that you continue to communicate on this site until you have a complete answer to your question, before doing any more work on your electrics. Judging by the mistake you describe, if you continue without guidance you may do much worse than make something that doesn't work properly. You may hurt yourself or damage your residence.


How to remove this ceiling lamp cover held together with three metal latches

As usual, it's easy when you know how.
The bolts attached to the metal rim of the light fixture (the part that's tight to the ceiling) are not the adjustable part.
Instead, the other part of them, the decorative metal clips that the glass bowl sits in are fairly flexible.
Here's how you remove the glass shade:
Cupping the glass shade in one hand, gently pry (with your finger) ONE of the decorative clips it sits in up toward the ceiling away from the glass bowl.
From here, you should be able to angle the glass bowl downward and out.
To put the glass bowl back in place once you've changed the bulb, pull back one of the decorative metal clips toward the ceiling and angle the shade back in,
letting the decorative clip gently flip back to hold the glass in place.
Good luck and be careful with electricity!
Always turn off the power.


How difficult/costly would it be to extend a 400V 3-phase domestic supply 150m down a garden in the UK?

Compared to solving this problem with a high-current single-phase installation, are there likely to be any extra costs or regulatory hoops to jump through to do it with 3-phase?

No, there will not be any extra regulatory hoops.

As to materials cost a three phase DB will cost more than a single phase one but the cable is likely to work out cheaper. Overall I would expect for a given power level a three phase feed to work out cheaper than a single phase one.

Don't expect this to be a cheap job, mostly because you are going to need a long peice of fat cable. Using aluminium cable is an option to lower the cable costs but it can be difficult to find electricians who know how to work with it safely.

Any electrican who regually does commercial work will know how to deal with three phase.

  Can we legally terminate it in our timber structure and distribute both 3-phase and single-phase sockets from there?

As long as the structure is sturdy, weathertight  and reasonablly permanent the fact it's timber shouldn't be a problem.

  Do we need to get permission from the power company or any regulators?

The job will be notifiable under "Part P" because new circuits are involved but nearly all electricans will be part of self-certification schemes so that should be a non-issue.


Why does my new smart dimmer have an extra wire?

Your old dimmer had neutral, eh? Now think that through.

Let's see. We've got safety ground; then always-hot as supply; then neutral to power the device -- Wait, aren't we missing something? How does it power the light???

The answer is, that wire you have identified as neutral, is not neutral at all.  It is surely switched/dimmed hot to the light.  The old dimmer does not need neutral to power itself; it's designed to get power by leaking it through an incandescent bulb.  This is the old way of doing things, and it does not play well with LED.

Now, I seriously doubt the old dimmer had a white output wire.   What I suspect is the wire in the wall is white.     That's bad news: it means your wiring the is an old-style switch loop which is using white as a hot wire.  That style of wiring does not have neutral.  You cannot use that smart switch here, unless you want to pull a /3 cable into the wall and wire it as a new-style switch loop.


Removing sand-blasting residue from window glass

You wouldn't be asking if it just wiped off, which it would if it was just a little bit of low-energy dust caught by the wind.

This tells me the glass was hit by high-energy sand particles, i.e. caught overspray from the blasting proper.  Sandblasting damages glass, and your contractor should've known that.  He has etched the glass (by roughening its surface, removing the gloss, which sandblasting does quite sincerely). I don't believe it can be recovered, and will need to be replaced.


Basement shower tiled floor not sealed by builder what now

The tile adhesive is not bonded to your foundation.  The rubber membrane is installed between the foundation and adhesive.  You definitely want to remove/replace.


Can I connect my EU 230V 2.8kW appliance to a US 240V 20A receptacle?

blink blink I can't believe it.
We get so many variations of "I got this European thing" or "can I plug (huge thing) into (tiny outlet)" or "renting as complication" - and the answer is always a huge Nope.  Until now.
Yes, you can!
That receptacle is exactly what you need for that appliance.
In fact, if you had the ability to run a new circuit to that appliance, this is exactly what we'd tell you to install.
You might want to buy a lottery ticket :)  Luck is with you today. (or skill?)
Change the plug.
It just takes a common NEMA 6-20 plug that has a strain relief appropriate for that diameter of cable.  Any electrical supply house will have it, and a hardware store or box store might even.
The only way I'd consider an adapter cable is if you made it yourself with a TUV-rated Schuko inline socket, some 12/3 cordage, and the NEMA 6-20P of course.
Even if you could find an adapter, 99% chance it would be some cheap Chinese rubbish that would catch on fire and kill you with toxic smoke while you sleep.  I suppose, if you could find a high-current (at least 2.5mm wires) Schuko "power strip" from a reliable vendor of unquestionable quality (Tripp-Lite, Siemens etc.), then I'd say buy it and change the plug to NEMA 6-20P.


How do you secure solid blocking in joists without staggering them?

It's called "Toenailing". Basically, you drive the nails at an angle through the block to anchor it into the studs on the side.  More info can be found at Family Handyman


What's causing them?

The building settling.

Should I be concerned?

Not really.

How can I stop it from increasing?

You can't, but improper climate control (swings in temperature and humidity levels throughout the house) will make it worse.

How can I repair the damage already done?

I'd use fiberglass tape and joint compound (chemically setting plaster; not water soluble top coat). The non-textured ceiling would be easy. The textured one needs to be repaired in the same way and then re-textured or the entire ceiling completely de-textured with a skim coat.

I'm guessing it was originally textured with a textured roller.

Another option is to caulk and paint it every time it redevelops. It's definitely worth a shot at this easy method, to see how long you can get away with just a coat of paint. You might want to widen the crack (with a painter's tool; a 5in1) so that it fills with paint/caulk and doesn't just make a bridge over the gap (that would crack again guaranteed, very soon).


Removing or modifying bridges between truss or joists to make way for ducting

Bridging (or blocking) between trusses or joists is used to keep the trusses or joists from “laying over” under heavy loading. Randomly removing a few pieces of bridging is not serious, because adjacent pieces of bridging will still keep the trusses and joists plumb.

However, in your case, the “bridging” is something else. I doubt it’s bridging because 1) the trusses are fastened to it with steel connectors, 2) the solid member is continuous, not discontinuous between the trusses, 3) the solid member is more than 38 mm (1 1/2”) thick.

I’m thinking that solid member is a structural beam, not bridging. Do NOT remove it or notch it until a structural engineer (not civil engineer) or an architect can review it.


How to Fill Gaps Between Hardibacker and Drywall?

If you are going to paint, the seams between the drywall and the hardibacker will need to be mudded and taped like any other wallboard seam or the joint will be visible and ugly. it will probably be hyper-visible actually, if you use glossy paint (as you should in moist areas).

I think you'll be fine with standard mud/tape, it's not a wet location, just moist if it is indeed above the splash zone (if it's not above the splash zone, you should use an alternate surface treatment instead of simply hardibacker). A good prime and gloss paint should protect the drywall, mud joint, and hardibacker.


Since this flex whip is supplied as an integral part of the cooktop (instead of being building wiring), and consists of what I presume are fixture-type wires in a length of FMC, the conductor-paralleling provisions in 310.10(H)(1) may not apply -- UL is the one who makes the decision on whether wires in an appliance can be paralleled or not.  Furthermore, the paired wires may go to different modules in the cooktop -- it appears to be common for large electric or induction cooktops to be broken up into multiple parts for load distribution purposes.

However, there is precedent in the NEC for treating the stove wires as tap conductors from the branch circuit, as per 210.19(A)(3) Exception 1:

  Exception No.1: Conductors tapped from a 50-ampere branch circuit supplying
  electric ranges, wall-mounted electric ovens, and counter-mounted electric
  cooking units shall have an ampacity of not less than 20 amperes and shall be
  sufficient for the load to be served. These tap conductors include any
   conductors that are a part of the leads supplied with the appliance that are
  smaller than the branch-circuit conductors. The taps shall not be longer
  than necessary for servicing the appliance.

In that case, they cannot actually be paralleled; I would suspect that they lead to different parts of the cooktop, even, as I mentioned above.

For box fill purposes -- I personally would count it as four conductors, even though only two current-carrying terminations are provided by the appliance manufacturer.  It isn't five, though, because only the largest EGC counts for box fill purposes as per 314.16(B)(5).


linseed oil over wood that was treated with water seal

NO. Linseed oil will not work on freshly sealed wood, it will not penetrate and will just lay oily on the surface until it partially dries into a gooey mess.

The benefit of products like Thompson's is that they last longer than natural oil finishes (although any claims of better protection are unproven, and in my opinion dubious). If you prefer linseed oil then you will have to wait a few (3?) years, then be prepared to re-apply the linseed oil annually. Better to just reapply the Thompsons every 2-3 years IMO.


To answer the question stated: slot 3 has the tandem (better called "double-stuff" to borrow a term from Harper on this site) breaker in it.

The problem you have is that whoever installed it wasn't paying attention, and installed the tandem in a slot (3) where tandems aren't allowed as per the wiring diagram, which violates the panel's listing.  Swapping the regular breaker in 5/6 with the tandem in 3 will fix this rather easily, though.

(What the diagram says is that slots 1-4 cannot be used for tandem or quadruplex i.e. "double stuff" breakers, while the rest of the slots can, although to install tandems on the right side of the panel in the tandem-capable slots you need to use quadruplex breakers due to the 240V circuits there.)


How can I be sure a wire is truly neutral?

In each case you have to stop and figure out the topology of the wiring you are working on.  I totally get that you're just trying to install smart switches and then get on with your day. But you can't just wing it because you're in a hurry.

In fact, you should figure out the topology of your wiring and develop a plan for wiring the smart switches before you buy the smart switches, and the topology should be pretty much determining your choice of smart switch product.

Take this example.

You open up both 3-way switches and see, voila, that they only have one cable are therefore both switch loops.  Power does not enter either switch box.
You open up the lamp - aha! Power enters here.
You use a voltage tester to see that the black wire on the right switch is always-hot in all switch positions.  Therefore it is the always-hot and so  you know which cable it is up in the light box.
You can see the wires attached to the brass screws are messengers, white and red.  You tag both of them with yellow tape on both ends, both in the switch box and up on the light box.  (which is why step 3 was important).
On the left switch, you can see which two wires on the brass screws, those are messengers, again you mark those with yellow tape on both ends.
You deduce the left switch is switched-hot, so you mark that orange.

Now you have accounted for all the wires, and you have an understanding of that circuit.  Now you know neutral is not present in either switch box, and always-hot is present only in the right box.

This forces you to a new approach.   You redesignate ALL black wires to be always-hot (line), ALL white wires to be real neutral, the right-side red wire to be switched-hot (load), and the left side red wire gets capped off and disused.  This, then, dictates which smart switches to buy: it calls for a 3-way master that takes line, neutral and load; and a 3-way remote that communicates wirelessly to the master. Such as Insteon.

As you get more experience, this becomes easier and faster, but the first couple times you just have to grind it out.


You should be able to find a piece of duct at the big box store to extend the boot to the wall. You'll need to trim it with a good set of tin snips. When you trim it leave some tabs so the register screws have something to bite into instead of just drywall. Get a larger register that better matches up to the duct. If you can't get the duct to line up with the register then see if you can rotate the boot and cut the duct at an angle. If you don't do a great job then get some foil duct tape to cover any gaps.


Best tool for removing small area of thinset?

For a small job like this I would use a hammer and a hand chisel like this Make sure to use safety glasses it is wild how far some of the chips can fly. I would inspect the Joist's on both sides of the toilet if the area has rot these may need to be repaired and part of the cause for the sinking. If you would like a new hammer drill most 1/2" models will work quite well in this application without the heavy impact of a hammer and chisel (home models).


Time to call a serviceman again. If you are smelling smoke from the heat vents, there is most likely something seriously wrong with your furnace. Combustion air and the ambient air should NEVER be mixing and this presents a dangerous situation where CO (Carbon Monoxide) could be entering your living area.

This is potentially fatal if not fixed properly. I wouldn't mess around with this one on a DIY level.


Unistall and Install over the range microwave

While I cant speak to your particular microwave or cabinets, there is an issue with many setups that do require an angled entry that may be the problem the installer is concerned about.

Many over the stove microwaves hang on a metal frame attached to the back wall. This frame usually has a lip at the bottom that engages with slots in the bottom back of the microwave and provides the support at the back edge. The other support points are bolts that come through the cabinets near the front of the microwave.

The microwave needs to be tilted on about a 45 degree angle to engage that back lip. Once engaged, the microwave is then tilted up and back until it is flush with the wall ant the bolts can be dropped in from the cabinet above.

It may be that the existing molding will prevent that tilt. The above cabinet prevents the microwave from being lifted straight up to clear the lip.

I would remove both inside (both sides)and front trim, and then reinstall after the oven is in place.


How to use the ground wire in 2 prong plugs

That cord is meant to plug into a Japanese outlet.  In Japan, it's common to have two-prong sockets with a separate grounding screw below for devices that need it.
The outlet it was desinged to plug into looks something like this:

To use your monitor in the US, simply replace that cord with a standard US computer monitor cord, an IEC C13 - NEMA 5.  They're very inexpensive.


Help identifying a fastener and finding a replacement

For 100013, use "threaded rod", commonly known as "all thread" and cut with a grinder or Dremel tool to size. Any hardware store will have it, but you'll probably need metric.

For 100585, I'd try "female threaded round standoffs", you can get them partially threaded so you can tighten them down. (Looking at the instructions, I don't think threadlocker is going to work) Otherwise, they make closed end standoffs with a hex head at the end.


When replacing carpet, can you re-use the tackless strips?

Certainly, if they're in "decent enough condition". Which means they aren't showing any signs of mold and are still well fastened. And that the 'tacks' will still grab the new carpet properly (I've never seen any so mangled that this was a problem).

Personal advice: whatever reason you took the old carpet out, will be the same reason you'll have to again. -You like oak, Jimmy? I'm a tile guy myself...


Since you framed the wall behind the in-concrete drain rough-in, you will use an S-trap from the bowl to the drain on the floor. Had you really wanted to use a P-trap, you would have framed the wall directly over the rough-in, used a P-trap into the wall, then an elbow down to the rough-in in the floor.
If you really want to use a P-trap then you'll need to move your wall. Since that does seem quite rather impractical (and probably makes the toilet rough-in unusably close to the wall), just stick with the S-trap. Functionally, an S- & P-trap work the same. I'm not aware of any additional clogging issues with an S-trap over a P (I have all S in my house and have very minimal clogging issues, especially since the long-haired daughter moved out on her own), so there's nothing to worry about there.
Dropping Placing a vanity over the pipe in the floor really isn't that difficult in comparison to pushing it up against the wall. You have to measure carefully in each case to get the hole cut (in the floor or the back, as appropriate) in the proper place, but you just make the hole a bit oversized and it's not difficult in either case. There's no requirement that the pipe be perfectly centered for either installation method.


wiring - is this feeding other circuits or all switches?

The cable with the white wire in the black wire bundle goes to a switch and the single black wire is the switched hot.

The others feed through to something else.

The National Electrical Code requires junction boxes to remain accessible. So you can't cover it up.

However, they do make a Code-compliant splice device for NM cable that could be covered up. It is designed for only one cable though. So, you would have to remove enough of the existing wiring so you only have to splice one cable.

Or, you can rewire the circuit to move the J-box elsewhere.

Good luck!


Shower head discharges water when not using

With so many generic cartridges out there, the tolerances are not as exact as they used to be and the seals aren't as tight. You could have a slight, temporary spike in the water pressure that would force water through a not so tight seal and out the shower head. The spike could be from your own home, shutting off a faucet or from the water system into your house.


This answer may be inaccurate because I assume you have the most common type of shutoff valve, which is a seat and washer type (v. gate valve or ball valve) and an oval handle (called, I think, a wrench pad).

First, shut off the main valve, so if you do break a pipe you won't flood.

Try turning the handle with a wrench while maintaining a counter-rotating force on the valve body with another wrench. This usually works for me, although the valve remains stiff and sometimes I need two wrenches to close it again.

If that doesn't work, try removing the compression nut. Here also you want two wrenches, a proper size crescent wrench for the nut and a pipe wrench for the valve body. As the nut starts to move, turn the handle with it and remove the handle, stem, and nut together. Once you have them out you can separate them without stressing your pipes. You will probably find that the packing has stuck to the stem.

Of course if you do break the valve or any pipes then you will have to replace them but at least you tried the easy methods first.


Why Does Over Kitchen Sink Fluorescent Use More Watts Than Bulb Says

While trying to post this question I got directed to a similar question re a Kill-a-watt meter that answers my question too. The bottom line seems to be that these inexpensive meters, like the Kill-a-watt, Reliance Controls THP103, and Efergy Elite will not accurately measure the watts for a CFL because they compute the watts by multiplying amps times volts whereas the power company meter measures watts directly. The former does not take into account the power factor, whereas the latter does.


How do I make a fake rock finish for a water feature?

There are several types of silicone molds that can be filled with regular concrete. There is a limited selection at the box stores, but you can find lots of different designs online. These are nice because you can use cheap bagged concrete mix, add colored dye if you want or even put in real stones and embed with the concrete.  Most of these molds are fairly small, 3 ft by 3ft and make 2 to 4 stones each.


Why don't American homes have blinds on the outside of their windows?

They're not to everyone's taste. They roll up into a large box above the window -- either inside or outside. And they are more expensive than blinds. Maybe Europeans like them for the noise and privacy factor and that may not be as much of a concern here in the states. Having said that I have wished many times that I had them in my house. Favorite feature is that you can open them up just a little bit so that it has holes in it and you get some light and some breeze. But also very nice to just shut out the world outside and get a good nap in the middle of the afternoon!


Should I replace a single powered roof vent with ridge vent according to my roofer's advice?

In my personal experience, a "real vent" on top of the roof (cupola, turbine, etc) is far more effective than continuous ridge vent, and I will in fact be retrofitting a cupola onto a roof with continuous ridge vent for exactly that reason. The space feels nearly unvented, despite "being vented" as the air movement through the ridge vent (with plenty of venting at the eaves) is pathetic.
What you have there appears to be a "mushroom fan vent" rather than a turbine vent (i.e it only really moves air when powered up, while a turbine vent as I understand the term vents passively all the time and more actively whenever the wind blows.) That can be useful for increasing air movement in the space when needed, and should not be particularly prone to leak if it's in good shape. It would not meet code requiring passive ventilation, though.
I would strongly suggest reading the actual code applicable to your local area to see what it actually calls for, rather than accepting that it specifies "ridge vent" if, in fact, it simply requires passive vents but does not specify how that is to be done (which would be more likely, in my experience.)


If you are comfortable using power tools a Sawz-all also called a reciprocating saw will do the job. You will want a coarse blade with less than 14 teeth per inch. They are  available in battery powered models if you don't have an outlet nearby. If you have never used anything like it before ask the salesperson if they can show you how to use it safely. Ask if they have a piece of scrap wood so you can make a cut to see if you are comfortable using it.


What could be the source of sediment found in washing machine?

Kids. Pockets. Dirt.

Even adults trek in a lot of dirt on their clothes. I would worry about it. That's what the filter is for and now you know how to clean it.


What could be preventing my garage door from shutting?

Check your sensors. The sensors could also be very dirty or blocked by something.

Openers also often have cutout sensors that will stop the drive when the load gets too high on the motor. It may be that the load in your case may be too high due to wear, dragging rollers, bent track, lack of lubrication, or rusty chain/screw. Look for these things and correct if possible.

The overload cutout sensors are often adjustable and may be set to low and thus need re-adjustment.


How can I create a radiant heat system for melting ice on wood steps?

Electric cables can be fixed there very well. Let's say we use 2 mm thick cables with low wattage (10 W/m).

Firstly you cut 2 mm wide and 3 mm deep cuts to the bottom side of your steps (using a hand circular saw). They should be parallel going from side to side. Put silicone and cables into the cut doing S bends, they should just fit in there. Cover the cuts with silicone to close them against pollution & weather.
Cut one cut for thermal sensor 2 cm next to the cable cut. It should be in a "thermally representative" place. Put the thermal sensor in it and cover it with silicone.
Do the wiring: thermal sensor and cables to thermostat and thermostat to the power line (via curcuit break).

I have in-floor radiant cables installed in cuts in EPS mats under the laminate flooring. There is a thermostat with an in-floor thermal sensor which I set to about 20°C. It works well and feels even better. They say cables must be embedded in a couple inches of cement, sand, or asphalt because the flooring can be overheated. That's why the low wattage (combined with wood stair tread).

But - will it do the job? Sure, because if it's only below freezing, it's enough to raise the temperature a bit to unfreeze. If it's rather cold, it's probably not freezing rain in the air (I don't know your climate).

Main pros:

You can decide how dense the cuts are to each other to decide the total heating power. I'd say 80 W/m2 should do.
Silicone covering the cables (above and under) will protect them from any damage and they will easily exceed the expected lifetime. And the surface of the wood will be stay closed against weather.
You set the thermostat to the required temperature (+3°C maybe). You can even turn it off or buy a thermostat with a programmable clock to be used at night.
Much of the work can be done by yourself and the materials needed aren't expensive too. Even with 100 m of cable and a programmable thermostat you won't exceed the limit.

Some cons:

Cutting from side to side weakens your steps very little or not at all.
You'll have to fiddle with bending and fastening the cables at each turn, because they have some minimal circumference of bend (5 cm maybe). You can let them just bend freely off the cut, but cover them with silicone too. Or cut several short cuts of circular shape.
You might decide to use Thermal Silicone to get even better heat transfer. But I don't think it's needed.

One more thought: pipeline protection cables have a built-in thermostats at certain places. But they are rather thick (9 mm) and expensive.


Yes what you are doing is fine.  IV Grounding Methods ,  In the code 820.100  coaxial cable shall be grounded. 820-100  (A) through (D).   (A) (1) Grounding Conductor , shall  be insulated and shall be listed.  (2) Material copper solid or stranded.   (3) Size , shall not be smaller than #14 awg and shall not be required to be larger than #6 awg.   (4) Length ,run as short as practicable,not to exceed 20 feet in length.   EXCEPTION,  If you can not have that length,a ground rod may be used in dwellings.  Run the cable as straight as you can.  And protect the wire from physical damage,where you go into stucco sleeve wire in sch80 pvc conduit. And you may want to run conduit on inside wall of garage to electrode, or if that is the main panel to the ground lugs. all connected and bonded .


Is it normal for my sump pump to run so often? If not, who should I call?

looks like you have a hole in your pit liner. but its doing its job  its still removing water from under the foundation as it should. however i advise you to call a reputable drain inspection service to do a video inspection of the footing drain those are the two pipes you see entering the pit. if water is leaking into the pit from a hole in the plastic liner it should also be coming into  it from the two pipes that enter the pit.


Can I install T&G Bamboo floor over a sagging subfloor?

I certainly would not lay the flooring down over an unprepared floor. I have done this and the flooring ended up splitting, cracking and making noise. I would reinforce the flooring and make it level with floor filler prior to laying the new flooring.