How to address ghost who moves runner (rug) constantly?

Center runner
Point video recording device (camera, cell phone, etc.) at runner.
start recording.
review recording.

If cause proves to be supernatural, make lots of money selling the recording, buy a new house, problem solved. Perhaps open up the floor under the moving runner and see what's (or who's) buried there, etc. or sell the house as a real verified haunted house for an extra high price to someone who wants such a thing. Or open a haunted B&B...

Otherwise, double-sided carpet tape or various pointy things (such as mats with points to stick into the carpet and the runner.)


Usually primer is white. In some cases the primer might be tinted. This is usually done when changing drastically from light to dark or vise versa but the color of the primer is not intended to be the final color, this is what the paint is for. When it is tinted, it would be tinted to closely match the final color.

If you want to color match, take a chip of paint to your local paint store and depending on the age, they can usually match it pretty well. I'd advise just using white primer and then getting the final paint color matched properly.


What profession/company is specialized in home air leaks?

What you need is called an Energy Audit. We had one done on our home several years ago. They go through your home looking for areas lacking in energy efficiency. One of the major parts of the audit is called a Blower Door Test.

During this test they put a large fan into the door of your home and put your house under a vacuum. The result of this test - how much air the fan is able to suck into your home from leaks - determines how "tight" your home is.

Our auditor went around the home with a smoke pen to identify areas where air was coming in - around switches, electrical receptacles, doors, windows, etc. Several days later a written report was provided to us which detailed specific areas to improve, ordered from most to least cost effective.

The Canadian Natural Resources website has more information about these types of programs.


How do I know if/when tuckpointing is necessary, especially if I finish the basement?

How do I know if/when tuckpointing is necessary

You need to tuckpoint when the existing mortar is failing. That could be that it's water damaged, cracked, or just getting weak. To see if it's weak, take your key and drag it along a joint...if it's easily flaking off and scratched...or worse, crumbling, then it's time to chisel out the damaged mortar and tuckpoint.

  especially if I finish the basement?

Well, that's the catch. You can't tell if you need to tuckpoint your joints unless you can see the joints. So you can't exactly just finish the exterior wall and assume you're good to go. New joints should last a long time, but they will eventually fail due to the inevitable moisture movement that happens in a fieldstone wall.

As such, you probably don't want to finish the exterior walls. I'd argue you shouldn't finish a fieldstone basement at all, but I've seen it done where they build a floating wall 2' or so inside the exterior wall. This gives you a walkway around the perimeter to keep an eye on things.


New house, new LG refrigerator & AFCI wiring

This is a serious case of "dueling safety systems".  Normally a $100,000 Cat engine has all sorts of safety shutoffs e.g. For low oil level.  But this one is a fire pump, protecting a $100 million warehouse. Saving the warehouse is more important than saving the engine, so it doesn't get those shutoffs.

Same applies to Radon vent pumps, smoke detector circuits etc.  And with the fridge.  It has one job, protecting your food safety.  It is a safety system and shouldn't be disconnected.

You just need to find a pretense in Code to allow that.

  NEC 110.3(B). Equipment must be installed and used according to its labeling and instructions.

Read the instructions for your refrigerator.  If it says "Do not put on an AFCI breaker" then remove the AFCI breaker and change it for a plain one.

Otherwise contact the manufacturer and ask them and get them to say "do not put on an AFCI breaker".


Feeding single circuit from two different subpanels (with interlock)

You have to switch the neutral in your application.   Fortunately your garage door load is only 120V, so you can use 2-pole interlocks.
Now, you're overspending on that particular panel.  What you're looking at is a common "QO" 8-space panel ($35) + a QO2DTI interlock ($30) + a pricey 100A breaker you don't need ($65) + a common 30A breaker ($16 because QO) + a socket you don't need.
You can buy just the components and avoid the expense of socket and large breaker: just a "QO" 4-space panel + the QO2DTI interlock and 2 2-pole breakers.  Don't leave room for anything else in the panel; it's an oddball 120V switched-neutral panel.
An even cheaper way to do this is to bring a receptacle fed from each power source... and right next to that, have an inlet.  From the inlet proceed with normal house wiring to the garage door opener (so this section of permanent wiring is isolated from all others).  Then have a short 1' extension cord that you plug into the inlet and move to whichever outlet is relevant.


How do I cut this material to put in a coach light

Go to Home Depot or Lowes or any construction retail store and ask for a "masonry hole saw" that you can put in an electric drill. You can buy any size you want. I checked with my local Home Depot (on line) and got prices of about $25.00 for a 1" and up to $60.00 for a 4-1/8". They can be used for wet or dry drilling in almost any masonry surface. I have used them for cutting holes in both brick and concrete.


No. A toaster oven is (mostly) just a resister. You'd have to see a large surge to kill a toaster oven. I don't think any other electrical malfunction would kill it.

Your outlet is probably fine, and I think you're suffering from bad luck.


Is it okay if my ledger board overlaps my foundation wall?

It's only a problem to the extent that you're hanging common joists on the unsupported portion of the ledger and therefore relying on the integrity of the woodgrain. If your joist hangers only attach on the upper portion, where the ledger is well attached to the framing, I see no concern.

If your hanger attachment extends lower than that, either anchor to the foundation as well or look for structural hardware that carries the entire ledger from the bottom and mounts to the framing. I've used this one on ICF projects, and it would probably work well without the embedded inner portion and the right screws.


How to tighten screw in looser masonry hole?

Shop for 'masonry screw anchor' and 'machine screw anchor'. These are much more tolerant of slight dimensional inaccuracies. They come in a variety of styles designed for different applications.

I used the lead-cylinder type when framing my finished basement and they hold a heavy door frame without shaking.

I would not use epoxy or mortar because you have to hold the installation in place until the adhesive sets. Plus you can't ever remove the screws.

I'm not sure but it looks like driving special screws directly into masonry should only be done with a matching drill and driver supplied by the screw vendor.


If you look more closely at the link, the bulbs are actually for mains voltages, in one of the pictures, it states "Input Voltage 90V-264V". This is the voltage that needs to be provided to the bulb, and the voltage is then internally stepped down to 12V for the LED modules. So in this case, the name of the product is misleading. If you look at the fitting, this is the "E27" fitting, which is an industry standard, and so you should expect any bulb that will fit in this fitting will be for mains voltage.

Answering your question about the cable, the cable is designed for use at 240V, and will have a certain rated current. If you stay within these limits, the cables should be fine to use at lower currents or voltages.

LEDs are normally powered by DC voltages. Either they accept a lower DC voltage, or have a built in circuit to rectify and reduce the input voltage. If you decide to buy LED lights that accept 12V input, a transformer alone will only give AC voltage. It is possible to find 12V DC plug in transformers which could work for powering LEDs, but you will need to check that it can provide enough current.

Also it is possible that you might encounter problems with the length of the cable. This will depend on the cable length, the cable core diameter, and amount of current you need to provide to the lights, but resistive losses could result in a loss of a few volts, which could mean the lights don't work, or at least won't illuminate fully.


Do power strip switches provide the same protection as circuit breakers?

This is what you are looking for in a design your power strip outlet that has all the functionality you are looking for.  I do not believe you could purchase the individual components to build this yourself for the price.  The product I found shows how it is put together if you want to look for all the parts yourself.
For the 5A breaker (fuse) on each outlet, I don't believe you will find that in any power strip.
Even with shipping to Central America, the price would still seem to be reasonable.
You could buy two of these and have 14 outlets available.  Link to the Tripp Lite 7 Oulets

Another way is to purchase a power switch with surge protection and add the lighted switch to the back of the strip.  This way the switches can be position on top and the outlets are now against the wall facing down.  You can also add the 5A reset button on the strip to limit the max current flow to 5A.  There are also circular button on/off, but none I seen that are lighted.  The circular ones are easier to fabricate, as you are only drilling a hole, not have to use a punch out to make a rectangle opening for the switch.
See example below of how to do this.  The switches have to be installed on the side of the outlet.  There would be very little space behind the outlets.


Outlets not working in laundry room. GFCI nonreactive. What should I do?

Other outlets may be connected to load terminals of GFCI's - and depending on your layout, that may not be the one in the laundry room. Or it may be the one in the laundry room, and its failure to reset either means there is a fault, or that it has failed. If anything is plugged in to any of the outlets, try unplugging it before you try resetting again.

It is certainly possible (not what I would do, but possible) to have two GFCIs where one is fed from the load terminals of another, and the other is not in an "obvious" location to the items disabled by it.

It's often worth switching the correct breaker manually "off" and back on, as trips are not always as obvious as we would hope.


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


Is this 230V steampunk metal robot lamp safe?

It's dangerous.  You've spotted one important flaw but it can combine with others to make a really dangerous product.
I originally suspected it was made in Europe by someone with more interest/knowledge in the sculptural aspect than the electrical one, but I've since spotted contact details in China for the seller. Either way it shouldn't be sold.
Here's why (as I only have a little training in designing stuff for mains, and haven't inspected it, this list isn't exhaustive):

It needs be earthed (assuming the metal really is metal and not plastic).
Wire nuts are rare in Europe and any decent solution shouldn't need tape.
Secondary securing on the wires near the joints is a good idea, even required in some cases but needs to be much more solid than tape.
I doubt the wire is properly strain-relieved where it goes into the assembly. This is now confirmed by the 4th picture. The wire nuts will take the strain of any pull on the cable, and the edges of the cable hole can abrade the insulation.

This adds up to a dangerous and easily foreseeable failure mode where you trip over the cable, rip the live out of the wire nut, it touches the pipes, making them live, you pick up the lamp, you wake up in hospital - if you're lucky.
I've been known to cut corners for something I'm using myself, but not to anything like this extent, and certainly not for something that's going to be used by others.
These days the preferred solution would be an external low voltage power supply (complying with the regulations and safe on the output), but it could be built safely for mains operation - it just hasn't been.


I have dealt with a lot of tub/shower surrounds.  100% silicone caulk (GE II is best at big box).  Most install instructions for the surrounds will actually tell you 100% silicone - some will give you their preferred brand.

Answers:

You don't need to take it apart.  This may make it easier though.  Weigh how much time you will spend taking it apart and putting it back in.
All of the old caulk needs to go and you need to be caulking on a very clean surface.
It should be sitting flush.  Why wouldn't it?  The fact that it isn't sitting flush tells me that it is moving (even if very slightly).  There is no way this 20 pound shower door is staying perfectly still suspended at certain points.  This movement will cause constant issues with your caulk and the fact that it will cause the issues in the easiest place for water to get in is a double whammy.  It isn't hard to install these things right.  There is no reason this should be sitting right (if it is bent then it needs to be bent back).

Other notes:

Sorry to say but this whole job looks hack to me.  I am not sure about the "main" issue (other than the people working on it) but it looks like maybe the wall isn't perpendicular or base isn't flat.
On the last picture it looks like you are actually missing a trim piece on the inside.  You must have something there to salvage this shower. I would simply call the manufacturer.  Ask them if they make something or have replacement parts for your shower.  You might want to order a new enclosure.  Your actual shower looks fine it is just the door system so I don't think this is a tear down for sure.
The caulking looks ridiculous.  This is "one-month" caulking.  More caulk isn't better.  The more caulk you apply the greater chance of the caulk being moved, bumped, whatever.  Then the seal on the caulk will break and a .5 mm crack can allow tons of water to leak.  Also all of your caulking should be from the inside of the shower.  Anything on the other side is cosmetic.


How can I correct a gap between joists and a beam on a new construction deck?

A pair of opposed shims (synthetic better than wood) would be fine. Just don't crown the joists by banging the shims in too tight. Trim the ends and forget it ever happened.


What do the neutral and ground connectors in outlets connect to?

Neutrals, grounds, NEMA 10, NEMA 14, and the First Rule of Electricity

The old way (3-wire) is called NEMA 10, and abuses the neutral as a protective chassis ground.  This works because the neutrals and grounds are bonded together in the main panel -- the purpose of a ground wire for an appliance is to send wayward current from the case back where it came i.e. the service entrance, while the neutral wire is going in the same direction, so to speak.  However, the NEMA 10 setup is problematic because if the combined neutral/ground breaks, the dryer's chassis will then float off to some shocking potential.

NEMA 14 (4-wire) eliminates this problem by separating the neutral and the ground, making them take two different paths back to that main panel bond.  That way, if the neutral wire to the dryer breaks or otherwise fails, the ground's still there to protect you from getting zapped.

When all else fails, remember the First Rule of Electricity: CURRENT FLOWS IN LOOPS!!! This means that electricity isn't ever trying to go to "ground", whatever-the-@$(!@$ that means, or to some random water pipe somewhere that really only is tangentially related to the entire electrical system.  It's always trying to get back to where it came from -- your electrical service from the utility or the battery in your car, for example.

Think of it like some district steam plant -- the utility is only loaning you the electrons or water molecules, as they are mere carriers of the energy you're getting sold.  Just like the steam utility would cut off someone who took all their valuable water and let it out into the atmosphere, the electric utility wants their electrons back just as much, if not more, and the same holds true for your car battery.


Mosaic installation: thinset excess spilling between the gaps

Your thinset should be like peanut butter.  If it is too thin then you could have possible issues with mosaics and flooring.  Basically you could push down to bare floor or close to it.

A 4mm trowel is perfect size for most mosaics.  I think that your issue is that either you aren't combing the area well enough after dropping down your thinset or possibly you are pushing down to hard.

The installation method for any tile but especially a mosaic is to comb the area in a direction, sit the tile on the area, then gently press the tile into the thinset perpendicular to the thinset streaks back and forth.  If you were to just press straight down hard you would have a lot of thinset in between your tiles and as mentioned before not enough behind the tiles.

Also you will always have a little spillover.  You don't have to clean out all of the thinset in between the tiles.  Your grout will bind to the thinset fine so you just need enough room for the thinset to not show.


Can I use a toggle bolt if there's no space behind the drywall?

I don't suppose you have a hammer drill? Tapcons! (my favorite concrete screws, you need 2", maybe 2.25") bushed out with 1" worth of washers. Make sure they're not home first ;) If you fall into a void after drilling into the 'concrete' they're probably cinder-blocks. If you then can't get the screws to bite, make the hole even bigger and use really long toggle bolts. If this is the case be prepared for having to do it both ways as some holes will be into the meat of the block and others into the voids.


Dilute white malt vinegar (a 50/50 solution) will remove it; apply it with a nylon brush dipped in the solution and scrub gently.  If you're outdoors, you could rinse the wall down afterwards with water.  If not, scrub it again using plain water.

The vinegar reacts with the lime leaching out of the bricks (which is causing the efflorescence) to form a different salt of calcium which (a) isn't visible and (b) is water soluble, so rinsing or scrubbing the second time should get rid of it.


Ceiling lights (fluorescent) takes too long to light

First, a little bit of a slow start is a good thing -- that is a better-quality ballast "soft-starting" the bulbs.  They light up pre-heaters in the ends of the bulb before striking the arc.  The best programmed-start ballasts actually measure performance, so they know to give the bulbs longer to start.  But this is not that.   To troubleshoot this:

Change the bulbs, unless you have tested the bulb good in another fixture.
look around for a "starter" and change the starter if it has one.
Replace the ballast with a modern electronic ballast.  In this case, if there's a starter, it will be bypassed.  You can leave it in place to avoid an ugly hole.

Far better to get an LED "tube" which fits in the fixture you have.  I recommend getting "direct wire" LED tubes, in which you rewire your fixture to bypass the ballast.  (Don't use "ballast ready" or "drop in" types, because they require you to keep the ballast in the fixture, and it must be working, and it must be a very particular type 0 which is more trouble than it's worth.)


New Electric range trips GFCI when plugged in - 4 wire, bonding strap removed

TL;DR Neutral Not Used, but you may have an actual GROUND FAULT
Most cooktops/ovens/ranges made for use in the USA are combination 120V/240V devices. They typically use 240V for heating (more power!) and 120V for lights/controls/clock. However, there really is no need for 120V - it is a convenience and small (these days, very small) cost savings for the manufacturer, since they can use lights/controls/clocks designed for 120V. Modern lighting (especially LED) can run just as well using 240V supply as 120V. Modern controls are miniature computers, and just like most consumer computers can now handle a range from 100V to 250V, so can the electronics for ovens.
The catch, which seems to have confused Avanti, is that in the USA neutral and ground are almost the same. They are bonded in the main panel and have the same voltage (nominal 120V) relative to each hot wire. Plus, for historical reasons, there are receptacles/wiring methods that combine neutral and ground, even though that is not allowed any more on new circuits (new construction or new/changed installations in existing buildings).
They didn't know what to do about this. They needed to provide a ground - that is a key safety requirement. They thought they needed to use neutral, since every receptacle they connect to in the USA will have a neutral connection. And in some, grandfathered, cases, that neutral and ground will be one and the same.
However, in a new installation, ground and neutral are separate. More importantly, the newest installations now have a GFCI, which will detect an imbalance between the hots & neutral. With a GFCI, if any power comes in on a hot wire and goes out somewhere other than the other hot wire or neutral, the GFCI will trip. The place (except if the power is going through you, which is the real purpose of the GFCI) for that power to go is, naturally, ground.
The first step is to disconnect neutral. The diagram makes it clear that the only place neutral goes is to ground. Which means that if you leave neutral connected to the circuit, neutral and ground are bonded. That is not supposed to be the case. Since neutral is not actually used, the solution to that is to not use neutral - do not connect the neutral wire to the plug. That should have no effect on operation of the range, if everything else is done properly - i.e., the lights/controls/clock will still work since they are powered by 240V and not 120V.
Once that is done, if the GFCI still trips then there is indeed power leaking from one (or both) of the hot wires to ground. Otherwise known as a ground fault. Which is dangerous. Which is a manufacturing defect/warranty repair situation.
Now here is the complicating problem: The instructions clearly state that neutral is to be connected. So not connecting neutral would be OK for testing but not for actual permanent usage, as it violates the manufacturer's instructions, unless you can get the manufacturer to certify that it is OK (e.g., a letter from the engineering department). Which only leaves one other thing to consider, if you have not done so already: the "ground strap". The instructions state not just to unscrew it (which is typical) but to cut the ground strap:

Remove the ground strap from the frame of range and terminal by removing its screw and cutting is as shown.

If you have not done this, doing so may solve the problem. If you have already done so, then it sounds like there truly is a ground fault.
Note that the wiring diagram seems to indicate "Neutral to ground" as part of the normal installation and not as a removable ground strap. But it could be that the diagram is wrong.


What is the smell coming through my HVAC system?

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


Using an incoming cat5 cable for my phone, how can I wire it so it goes to a switch and also to my phone line

Are you under the impression that you have an ethernet cable that just happens to supply phone service, but will also magically supply ethernet if you plug it into a switch?
You (appear) to have a 4 pair cable (if it's cat 5) which has probably (you're a bit unclear, but using the most likely scenario) got POTS (voice telephone, or plain old telephone service) and DSL using one pair - typically the blue pair - that's presently connected to a 3-line wall plate, but (probably) only using one line (typically the red/green pair in the center) since you mention using a splitter from that to your modem (presumably a DSL modem) and your Phone (presumably POTS.) The other 3 pairs are probably dead and doing nothing.
So, what you need wherever you relocate this cable to is to either reconnect it exactly as it was to the 3-line plate you had it terminated to before, and then to your phone (probably with a DSL filter in line there) and modem (without a DSL filter so it gets DSL), and then plug the other side of the modem into your router and your router into your switch, or if your modem is a router, plug the ethernet side of your modem/router into your switch.
The telephone side of this (POTS/DSL) has no connection to your ethernet switch.
If I'm guessing correctly, you only really need to connect the blue pair to an RJ-11 jack (Red/Green - center pair) and your splitter to your telephone and modem, or connect it to TWO RJ-11 jacks and have no splitter required. You can do that with POTS/DSL. You can't do that with Ethernet. Blue/White connects to Red, White/Blue to Green.
There are a variety of less-likely-these-days scenarios involving actually using two or three telephone lines, but they are very unlikely in the current era, and I'm having to assume a great deal, so I assume the unlikely things are not what's happening here.
Alternatively, put it back where it was, and run a cable from an Ethernet port on your Router or Modem/Router to the switch.


Proper installation of a supply line escutcheon

Use copper stub outs for pex.  Like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Sharkbite-25094A-Copper-Elbow-Bracket/dp/B016Q4OAKY
It is very difficult to finish pex coming out of a wall nicely.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVD-ZMC2jA0


Were the previous owners kind enough to leave the instruction manual for the tub?  If not, you may be able to look up the model online, and get a copy.

The last jetted tub I had experience with, had removable jets, which could be placed in the dishwasher (as per the instruction manual).  In order to clean out the tubing, we would fill the tub, and add 1-1.5 cups of bleach, then run the jets for a good 20-30 minutes, drain the tub, refill with clean water, and run for another 5-10 minutes.  It was amazing how much "ick" came out, and with the bleach you don't have to worry about buildup.

If the previous homeowners were as you say, lacking hygiene, you may want to repeat this process a few times.


no builder in his right mind would have installed hardwood on a wavy floor.  it sounds more to me like their was a flood which has damaged the hardwood. its swelling, subsequent twisting and then drying has caused the randomly warped floor, but it could also be too high of an ambient humidity, which can be a sign of a bad vapour barrier system and all the nightmares that come with that.

just get a certified engineer to write it up, or even better, just run away as fast as you can (unless you are getting some ridiculously good deal on it).  remember, many builders are shysters at heart, so other things could be wrong that are currently hidden.


How can I protect the wall behind a closet from developing a mold problem?

Mold needs three (or really four) things to grow: Stagnant air, moisture/humidity, and dim or dark areas with organic 'food'. The solution you're looking for probably involves using a permanent waterproof barrier (either a paint product -- which would be an industrial coating -- or a foundation product) in order to largely remove the humidity from the equation. Those coatings would need to be installed by a professional. As a cheaper and DIY solution, you might also consider 6mil plastic vapor barrier on the back side of the wallboard.


Garbage disposal not turning on with on/off switch. Water in sink draining in dishwasher.

Your Garbage Disposal and drain is backed up.

The garbage disposal is jammed and the overload has probably tripped.

Look into the disposal with a bright flash light and you will find it probably needs to be cleaned out. With the unit off - clean it out.  You might also want to clean the U shaped pipe - called a trap that is under your sink - it is VERY easy and if you do a you tube search How to Clean P-Trap- you can watch a video on how easy it is to do.

Then after cleaning them you can Reset the overload button which is usually located on the side of the Garbage disposal (red button looks like a writing PENs push button) and try to run it.

All this should take you about 30 minutes including the video..


How to seal crevices in dry stack rock wall to prevent gopher activity?

I would expect that dry stacked stone would shift some, and that cement is too hard.

Consider using lime mortar instead. It's much slower drying, but isn't as brittle, and microcracks will self repair.  Currently used a lot on strawbale construction.


Wiring gas hob with electric ignition to mains

If it is solely for the use of the electronic ignition then wire it in anywhere you please. The ignition does not use that much power.

But if it has a electrocnic cooker then you need a dedicated socket AND dedicated breaker with out anything else running on that ciruit, which is also rated at high amperage and earth leakage.(Usually stoves likes this do not use a plug but have to be hard wired with copper cable into the oven where there are several warning messages)


Nylon mesh tape has some pros and good applications. It is best used on joints that may have more tendency to crack, seams with wider gaps, boards that don't fit real flush to each other. It is much stronger than paper tape, but more difficult to cover using straight tools.(as opposed to beveled or bow trowels) It saves time as you do not need a base mud coat, the tape adheres to the wall by itself. The first coat should be a bit thicker than you would use with paper tape, thus taking longer to dry.

Paper tape is preferred by pros because it is lighter, thinner, cuts easier and much cheaper. When using paper tape, the base coat and first overcoat should be a setting type mud, not general purpose. Not absolutely necessary, but setting mud is harder, holds tape better and cures quickly.  Usually a 45 or 60 minute set up type works great. The paper tape must be completely saturated and embedded into the base coat or air bubbles will appear. This first coat should be very thin and firmly troweled over with a 6 or 8 inch stiff knife to push out all air, make good contact with base coat and remove excess base coat mud. Subsequent coats of mud can then be the GP premixed stuff.


What are the steps for landscaping a lawn?

A few thoughts...

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

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


Best way to get both 120V and 220V from existing multiwire branch circuit (MWBC)

You do not have a "120V MWBC".

You have a plain MWBC.  240V-only (no neutral) loads are allowed on MWBCs.

They even make receptacles for that.

Note how there is no tab to break away on the visible side, since one must be neutral and the other L2.  However you can see the tab peeking out from the other side, which could both be L1 of the same circuit.. Because this is legal on MWBCs.

As far as GFCI protection:  It's an easy job for a 2-pole GFCI breaker.  Replace the current non-GFCI 2-pole breaker in the service panel  with a 2-pole GFCI breaker.  Liberate the two GFCI receptacles and reuse them somewhere useful.

If you don't have space in your panel, then it's time to fit a subpanel somewhere. Since you're ready to do that, do that... just not out at the patio where it'll be a one-trick pony.  Next to the main service is better. After all, you have this "out of spaces" problem all over your house.  So fit it somewhere that makes sense for all your future loads.

I know adding a subpanel is a big job, "best" kicked on down the road for awhile longer... But the fact is you'll be right back here again when the wife wants an on-demand water heater or a plug-in hybrid.  In this day and age, with so many amazing electrical gadgets, a full panel is no place to be.


if a gas grill's push-button battery-operated igniter is clicking, but grill doesn't light

Follow the wire from the button to where it ends, somewhere near the burner.

In theory, it will be clipped a specific distance from the burner so that a spark will jump between it and the burner to ignite the gas.

In practice, it could be covered with food drippings or could have become detached from where it is supposed to be, or it could be thoroughly corroded.

If you can clean it and make sure it is attached in the right place, it should work okay again.

But more likely there's not much you can do that will make a permanent fix, and you'll end up using a hand-lighter to ignite the flame.


Behr 1 part epoxy paint vs 2 part epoxy for cement floor

I added granules to epoxy paint for grip on floor surfaces, ok we were dealing with a large factory floor not just a few square metres...


Zipties (aka cable ties). Be sure to use ones that are UV-resistant.

Cost pennies each, strong enough for the application you're talking about, non-damaging and non-permanent, and easy to remove when done.


What kind of insulation should we put under new tin roof?

You can install insulating foam panels directly to the existing roof membrane (decking). The panels are backed with OSB wood panels (the OSB would face out/up). So basically it would be roof decking, then foam insulation, than bonded OSB wood decking. Over it all you would place roofing felt and roofing material. Check out this short video.


Ethernet cable comes in many varieties. For now, let's assume you are talking about Cat5e 4-pair cable. Anyone can run it, but electricians are experts at snaking wires through walls and may be the best (even if not the cheapest) choice. But any contractor or handyman who has some experience doing it can do it safely, as long as they keep away from the regular electric wiring.

Most (I can't say necessarily "all") of the issues with electrical wiring do not apply because the voltage & current are much less dangerous than with household AC wiring. But the tricks & techniques are the same. I gave my electrician a short course in Ethernet cabling years ago because he knew how to run the cable but didn't know anything about the ends.

I highly recommend that the cables be terminated with jacks. I have seen many installations, including by "professional" installers, that terminated with a cable coming out of a whole in the wall and plugging directly into a router or other device. This is in my opinion, unprofessional (who wants a wire coming out of a hole in the wall?) but more importantly if the end of the cable ever goes bad (and it will, the day of a big deadline) you have to crimp on a new connector. Properly installed jacks rarely go bad and if the cable from a jack to a device goes bad you toss it and plug in another one.

Unlike regular electrical wiring, Ethernet cabling can use box eliminators instead of full electrical boxes, though if you have boxes available (e.g., from previous projects but without any live electrical wires inside them), you can use those too. If you have existing old phone wiring that you no longer need, then you MIGHT be able to use it to pull new Ethernet cables through the walls, but keep in mind that telephone wiring (especially residential) is often wired in a daisy-chain fashion while each Ethernet connection will normally need its own home run.


homax wall texture spray can won't work second time

I've found that these are, generally speaking, one use products.

You can improve your odds by turning them in a way that blows propellant (usually down, but some products are tricky that way) and clears the airway, but even this is hit and miss. (Among other things, it gives you less propellant for the next time, so you'll end up with goo in the can that you can't shoot.)

So buy small cans if you have a small job.


It was actually my thermostat. I have a new nest one and after jumping at the aquastat I realized the thermostat wasnt actually calling for heat and would just click the relay instead of staying down.


Help with light fixture replacement; no ground wire (image)

I think I see a ground bundle behind the wire nutted connections with a metal crimp. For many areas the crimp was required in the past.
Move the wires out 1 wire may be longer allowing you to pigtail a new ground   I have cleaned the texture and paint off the ground in the past and crimped a pigtail on because the crimp is usually two close to the end to use a wire nut. But your grounds do look to be there. A metal fixture should have the ground connected a plastic one it doesn’t need the ground.


How do I replace a broken light fixture?

In hindsight, I think this past question might have also helped out:
How can I change the bulb in this three-clawed, ceiling-mounted dome light fixture?

A picture of what you currently have would allow us to help you out more, but I'll go on the assumption that it needs to be replaced..

In this case, it's a pretty simple process. Switch off the power back and the breaker and finish removing the dome if you haven't yet, again the above question link could help. If you're able, test the sockets with some form of voltage tester (or even a good bulb that works on another lamp) to ensure that the power is off. Then on the base that is mounted to the ceiling, there will either be some screws holding it up or a center threaded rod which will have a nut and washer holding the fixture to the ceiling. In either situation, unscrew it, but keep a hold on base as it will only be held up by the wires after it has been disconnected from the support. You should be able to pull it down enough to see the wiring above the base within it's electrical box. Disconnect the light from the wiring and you're good to go. Follow the instructions that are included with your replacement fixture and you'll have light back in no time.


What pressure rating should a replacement safety valve on a compressor have?

Your friend is right. If the operating and safety pressures were the same (nominally, given tolerances), you'd likely have nuisance trips of the safety valve.

Enough safety factor is built into the tank that it's not a concern to be 10 psi higher with the safety valve. In fact, the tank is probably the same one used on higher-duty models, with the pressure being limited by the compressor motor's abilities.


If the gap is such that one could insert a mechanism into the space, a rock climbing cam may be an answer. The item is sold in sizes based on the width of the crack in the rock to be bridged/wedged. They are astonishingly expensive, but considering that one's life is hanging from this device, perhaps not so much.

A quick search shows some priced as low as US$20 and a few in the US$40 range, but most are outtasight for the aforementioned reasons.

You'd be able to insert the cam into the gap, tug it into place, spreading the load bearing segments and attach substantial weight to the fixture. When done, remove the decoration and push or tap upward to release the cams.

If you live near rock climbing regions, an outfitter shop would have stock. You could ask if anyone has a worn or otherwise useless device, as you would not be putting your life on that line.


I'm assuming you've removed it before, so you know how? I've used Hilti hammer drills that either need a quick 1/8th counterclockwise turn to unlock it, and others like Bosch that are just pure quick release. Do first just make sure you understand how to remove the bit because it's sometimes not obvious and may be slightly different than how you insert it.

Typically an SDS bit can move front and back about 3/4" while being retained in the chuck. Or is it completely seized up?

Can you fill the chuck/drill bit interface with as much WD-40 as you can, then drill into steel at about 10% pushing strength and under 25% speed while retracting the chuck release while it's turning? You might need to use something slippery like a piece of plastic covered in mineral oil to hold it in while it's turning. The vibration should rattle the retaining mechanism free. Let the SDS drill bit bounce the hammer drill up and down as you do it.

I'm talking about quick release SDS chucks, but Hilti also makes some that work with normal round drill bits like a normal drill chuck. Those tips won't do anything for a regular drill chuck that's not an SDS style quick release. You could take a picture of it and post it here if you're unsure.

Basically find a way to make the tool vibrate itself enough to loosen it. I'm pretty sure you need the drill bit removed to completely remove and disassemble the chuck for cleaning/servicing, but not 100% positive on that model.

If it is a quick release SDS chuck, in the future be sure to apply a dab of lithium grease to the end of your drill bit every time you change it. Wipe off old grease and reapply every so often. Hilti makes a special pump applicator that's perfect to keep in your tool box, but just as long as you're using something it probably doesn't much matter. Just that basic pale yellow lithium grease is all that's in there as far as I can tell.


Make sure you install a proper fan support junction box that attaches firmly to nearby joists.  A regular lamp ceiling box cannot handle the dynamic loads (vibration etc.) of a fan.  An "old work" ceiling light box that merely clips to the drywall would be totally inappropriate. Drywall has no real strength.

I don't know whether power comes into the switch box and onward from the fan; or into the fan and onward from the switch box.  Regardless, the wiring is the same.  Also, it's a rare situation where all wire colors match their purpose, so color coding does work here.

All grounds are tied together. Each device gets a ground pigtail, i.e. there's a wirenut in the box joining all the grounds.
All neutrals are tied together.  Each device that needs neutral (the fan) gets a pigtail.
Black is "always-hot" in all cases, and all blacks are tied together.  Each device that needs always-hot (the switch) gets a pigtail.
Red is "switched-hot".  One end goes to the switch.  The other end goes to the fan as its "hot" wire (typically wirenutted to a black wire on the load).


how do I disinfect a well with plain bleach

1)             Use common household bleach as the chlorine source for
  disinfection.

  [Bleach products usually contain 5 to 6 percent chlorine.  For the
  disinfection procedure to be effective, the pH (acidity) of the well
  water should be between 6 to 7.5.  If it is not in this range, then a
  well treatment professional experienced in disinfection of high pH
  water should be consulted to adjust the pH and maintain it in the
  correct range during the disinfection process.

  2)             Find the total depth of water in the well.

  [For example - If the well is drilled to 200 feet and the water level
  is 50 feet down from the top, then there is a 150 feet depth of water
  in the well]

  3)             Determine how many gallons of water are stored in the
  vertical column of the well.  Once you know depth you can work out the
  gallons.  (See Table 1 for specific  Water Volumes)

  Well diameter gallons per foot of well gallons in 100 feet

  4-inch 0.65   65

  6-inch 1.47 147

  8-inch 2.61 261

  [NOTE - disinfection is not feasible for large-diameter dug wells]

  4)             Work out how much bleach will be needed:  For every 50
  gallons of water in the well use one quart of laundry bleach - (4
  quarts in a gallon).  Do not use excessive amounts of bleach - more is
  not more effective.

  [In most cases, one gallon of bleach will disinfect 200 gallons of
  well water at a chlorine concentration between 200 to 300 ppm (parts
  per million)]

  [NOTE - Bleach loses strength in its container over time, Check the
  “sell by date” and use bleach that is less than three months old.  Use
  unscented bleach to avoid adding unneeded chemicals to the water (It
  is usually less expensive too)]

  5)             For best results the bleach should be combined with
  water before adding it to the well.

  [By reducing the concentration there is less chance of corrosion of
  the cables and pipes in the well.  The greater volume of water helps
  get the chlorine mixed in the well column.]

  [NOTE: - Do not mix chlorine solutions with other cleaning products,
  including ammonia, because toxic gases will be created.

  6)             Make the Chlorine-Water Mixture by filling a five
  gallon bucket with water and adding about one quart of bleach.  Pour
  the mixture into the well and repeat until the right amount of bleach
  has been added to the well (see #4 above).

  7)             Remove the well cap and pour the mixture directly down
  inside the well casing.

  [NOTE - Wear rubber gloves and safety glasses to protect skin and eyes
  from splashes.  Spills contacting the body should be rinsed
  immediately and thoroughly with fresh water.]

  8)             Recirculate the water in the well by running water with
  a hose back into the well for 30 minutes.

  [This will help draw the Chlorine-Water Mixture down the well and will
  wash the “dry” portion of the well casing or drilled hole above the
  water table more thoroughly.]

  9)             To disinfect the household plumbing first turn off the
  electric or gas supply to the hot water heater.  Turn on all the
  faucets, shower heads, clothes washers, dish washers and outside
  faucets, etc. until there is a chlorine smell at each location.

  [NOTE - If you have water conditioning equipment check the owners
  manual to see if it is sensitive to chlorination. All equipment in the
  water system should be disinfected because it may serve as a safe
  haven from which the bacteria may reinfect the system.]

  10)         Leave the Chlorine-Water Mixture in the plumbing system
  and well for 12 to 24 hours before removing the chlorinated water.

  [NOTE - During the disinfection process, the well water should not be
  used for consumption, so make plans for essential water needs before
  you begin the disinfection process!]

  11)         Remove the chlorinated water from the well by running the
  pump and leading a hose from outside faucets to a safe area.

  [Don’t put the chlorine solution into a septic system or in a creek or
  pond where it may kill fish. Flowers and vegetables may be affected by
  chlorinated water.]

  12)         When the chlorine odor has gone the well flushing is
  complete.

  [If you have difficulty smelling the chlorine odor a swimming pool
  chlorine test kit can indicate whether or not there is chlorine
  remaining in the well water.]

  13)         Once the chlorine has been removed from the well water,
  the indoor plumbing may be flushed out to the septic or sewer system
  to remove the chlorinated water.

  [Re-energize the hot water heater. The water supply should now be
  bacteria free.]

  14)         Wait about 5 to 10 days before resampling the water supply
  and testing for bacteria.

  [If bacteria are still present, repeat the process.  It may take
  several treatments to remove long-established bacteria colonies.  If
  the problem persists, contact a professional familiar with
  microbiological contamination in wells.]

  15)         Repeat testing in three months to confirm treatment
  success, and then test annually.

https://agwt.org/content/water-well-disinfection-procedure


Connecting the motor to 12/2 wire and a 6 position dial in an evaporative swamp cooler

First u can run a second 12/2 wire to get lo (red)
Black is hi
White neutral an green ground
Wire accordingly

Ck utube video. Guy does a good job show n tell on hookup

Also ck switch with power off using an ohm metrr an see if u get the proper reads


How do I know if this switch box has a neutral wire?

Yes, #1  is your group of neutrals and you would need to pigtail into that connector with a piece #14. Naturally, you want to shut off the breaker before doing any work. You're going to have to be careful arranging the existing wires so you can get the new timer switch into the box, and even then, you might need to add a box extender.


How do I remove countersunk baluster screws?

You could use a plug cutter to remove the screw and surrounding wood.


The only thing I can think of that the plumber adjusted under the sink is he swapper the hot and cold lines which had been installed backwards. If the hot water tank is at a distant location it would take sometime before hot water reached the faucet. The same would be true if you have a tankless water heater; standing water in the hot line cools when the faucet is closed for awhile.


Electric front load dryer making room extremely humid and wet

Most "traditional" electric dryers basically have a heating element, a fan, a motor and a control panel. The motor turns the drum, usually via a belt. The fan blows air past the heating element into the drum. The air then flows out, through the lint filter to the back (or possibly side) of the dryer through ductwork to the outside.
Anything can go wrong, but the most likely problem is that the air is going into the room instead of to the outside. That points to one of a few possibilities (more specifics would depend on looking at the manual for the specific model):

Air blocked from exiting the dryer, resulting in it seeping out through any cracks/gaps and, therefore, going through the control panel (condensation) and into the room.
Ductwork not connected properly at the back of the dryer. This would easily explain the air going into the room, but not the condensation in the control panel.
Ductwork damaged, preventing air from exiting properly. This could result in air going into the room and/or air not exiting the dryer normally and instead seeping out through any cracks/gaps.
Ductwork not connected to the outside. Presumably accidentally (because if it was on purpose, the old dryer would have had the same problem) and the air going into the room.

Check the installation manual to see if there are any dampers, multiple venting options, etc. that might explain the problem. Also check the ductwork to make sure that it is (a) connected to the dryer, (b) connected to the outside and (c) not crimped, squashed, torn, etc.
With typical ductwork, it should be easy to remove it from the dryer. That is important so that you can clean the ductwork periodically, because no lint filter is perfect, and dryer lint fires are a very real problem. One thing to try is to disconnect the ductwork from the dryer and then turn on the dryer for a few seconds. You should get a steady stream of air through the vent. If you don't, then the problem is inside the dryer. If you do, then the problem is in the ductwork.
The ductwork should be as long as it needs to be, but no longer. That is because every extra bend can collect lint or get crushed. The ideal setup is one elbow out of the dryer, one straight length of ductwork (best is solid metal, next best is flexible metal, worst (by far) is vinyl/plastic), then another elbow to get through the wall to the outside. Sometimes the ductwork has to be more complicated, especially if the dryer is not next to an outside wall, but every extra turn is equivalent to several feet of additional ductwork, and every fan (dryer, exhaust fan, etc.) has a limited effective distance.
If the ductwork is more than a couple of feet longer than it needs to be, cut it! With flexible ducts that is very easy. With solid metal it is a bit trickier (tin snips or replace with a pre-cut shorter length) but the end result will be a more efficient and safer dryer.


How can I mitigate humming from a streetside electrical transformer?

That noise can really get annoying.

Hate to say it, but I'm not sure there is much you can do about it in your house. However, there are steps the utility company can take to mitigate it.

Here is a writeup of what you are dealing with:
https://electrical-engineering-portal.com/transformer-irritating-hum

They may have to adjust how it is mounted, or worst case (for them) change the transformer as some are noisier than others. You will probably have to be persistent.


How do I connect a ceiling fan without a light kit?

Personally, I would follow the instructions for wiring it as if it did have a light kit. You, or someone else, may someday want to add one, and that's far simpler if you can just remove the cap, plug in the connector, and bolt the light fixture in place. They may still want to rewire in order to put the lights under control of a wall switch rather than or in addition to the pull chain, but if not...


Now that I see your photo I'd do this differently. I'd install a vertical cleat just behind the faceframe on each side of the cabinet, maybe 1" back (the thickness of the plate plus 1/4"). I'd then span a sheet of 3/4" plywood across them, creating a solid face on which to install your mount.

You should have either a cabinet wall or framing to screw into. Make the plywood as tall as possible without being visible to give it rigidity. You could also use two-by lumber if you prefer.

Plan view:

    | |                                      | |
    | |_                                    _| |
    | | | <-- cleats --------------------> | | |
    | |_|__________________________________|_| | <-- cabinet wall
    | |______________________________________| |
    |_|     ^ -- plywood plate               |_|
  ________________________________________________
 /                  TV                            \
|__________________________________________________|

One advantage to this approach is that you can use a simple, inexpensive mount rather than an elaborate articulating arm mount. This saves money and results in a more stable setup. Be sure to work out the depth of everything so you're able to tilt as you like when you're done.

Original answer:

Rather than installing something that may be visible around the television, just add a sheet of 3/4" plywood to the one stud, and also adhere it to the drywall with project adhesive or silicone.

Cut a sheet that's about 6" smaller than the tv in both directions. Apply a 1/4" bead of adhesive to the entire back side in a zigzag pattern. Using four 2-1/2" gold screws, fasten the sheet to the stud Once the adhesive is set this will hold any modern tv with no problem.

Be sure to properly pilot your mount screws so they grab the plywood well. If you're using an articulating mount, consider installing a pair of toggle bolts at the ends of the plywood as insurance in preventing the sheet from pulling away.

Elevation view:

------------------------------------------------------
.                                                    .
.     __________________________________________     .
.    |                    *                     |    . <-- TV outline
.    |   (       (                  (      (    |    .
.    |    )       )       *          )      )   | <- . --- plywood
.    |   (       (                  (      (    |    .
.    |    )       )       *          )      ) <-| -- . --- adhesive
.    |   (       (                  (      (    |    .
.    |    )       )       *          )      )   |    .
.    |__________________________________________|    .
.                                                    .
.                         ^--- screws                .
------------------------------------------------------


Can I thread the inside of a steel water pipe (encased in concrete) to safely make a connection to the remainder of the water system?

It may be possible but I would be concerned that the age and condition of the pipe might make it brittle and not good for tapping threads into.

My suggestion for a solution would be to rent a "core augur" and drill a new hole nearby through the foundation, and fix the pipe outside the structure. Run the new pipe through the new hole and abandon the old pipe.


My attic unit already has a wire connected to C, can I still connect a wifi thermostat?

Yes.

If you have an air conditioner, the C wire is used to connect the relay in the outside condenser unit.

Technically speaking, if the transformer in your furnace is too small (eg: JUST big enough to power the control board, relays, and the condenser relay) then it's possible that the thermostat could push it over the edge, causing your furnace to not work and/or behave strangely. However, the amount of power we're talking about here is pretty small. Unless you're connecting a thermostat with a monster color touchscreen to a 20-year-old furnace/air handler, chances are you won't have an issue.


My best guess based on the pictures provided and info:

The first panel is probably a main breaker switch that can be used to turn off the entire panel with one switch (instead of turning them all of individually). The "second panel" is a 100 amp panel. The service amperage is listed on the sticker. The two switches connected with a removable rod are most likely an attempt to make two 70 amp switches into a double slot 100 amp switch, which of course is a code violation and is just negligent.

What exactly are you trying to do? Was your only question just what type of panels are these? If there is more to this question, can you post another picture capturing the conduits and wiring going into each panel, that would give me a better idea of exactly what is going on with this strange setup.


Wiring ceiling rose with single pole switch isn't working

Problem solved. The light switch in question was linked to the "live " in an adjacent room switch(i.e two reds on one switch). This had become detached and when reconnected both light switches worked. An odd way of making a ceiling light connection.


On a final project of residential automation, where should I put my Arduino?

In a project box, on or in a wall. Like an alarm system or other low-voltage gear.


Stabilizing a gravel driveway with massive holes and steep inclination

You don't need to concrete the whole thing.

You do need to shape it correctly. Even in arid areas (seems likely from the picture), water is the major thing that destroys poorly built roads - when it does rain, the water flows down the road and moves material - unless the road is shaped to divert water off to the side in a short distance, so that there is never so much water collectively running on the road that it moves the gravel. In a first step this might consist of adding water bars every once in a while to divert water to the side, but a complete solution consists of putting crown on the road, so that rather than having two wheel ruts (which become water channels, and then become deeper ruts) you have a slightly mounded profile and all water runs off to the sides (and, if need be, you have adequate ditches to handle the water once it is off the side of the road.)

Depending on finances and inclination, you can do this piecemeal over time for little cash with shovels and rakes and implements of destruction, or you can hire a contractor with a road grader. If the contractor also has a rubber-tired vibratory roller and knows how to use it, so much the better. You may want to remove (or break into smaller chunks) the random chunks of concrete, unless you are adding sufficient material to bury them. You will occasionally need to re-rake as your tires move material, but it should not be frequent or major if you drive calmly and are not spinning your tires. If you allow tire ruts to remain, and it rains, you'll have worse ruts after it rains. An old bedspring or section of chainlink fence can also be used as a maintenance drag (vehicle-pulled rake-equivalent) to help keep things where they should be.

If your gravel is 1" down to fines, it should work. If it's 1" stones with no fines, it won't pack well - good for drainage, not so good as a road surface. A gravel/stone supplier should be able to get you a few loads of "road base" which will have enough fines to pack.

If you work on it piecemeal, work from the top down, so each section you complete will stay put.


How to insulate around an electrical panel?

If you have some space between the meter box and the face of the sheetrock (I think you do but pictures can be misleading) then a sheet of rigid foam insulation of that thickness may give you a bit more insulation right over the box than you'd get from that much fiberglass, or just leaving a hole in the insulation over the box.

Should be no issue with insulation touching the box.


Is water inside a washing machine motor normal?

Motors that use cooling water normally Chanel the water through the motor without any water coming in contact with the windings.
The insulation on motor windings is very thin and a motor may run for a while when wet but water usually will Usually cause a failure . I bake motors out that have gotten wet and they are ok in many cases but if it fails on start up they are usually toast. So dry the motor out reassemble and good luck.
If you have a small electric heater put the motor windings in front of that for 6-8 hours I have saved large electric motors by doing this when they did not fit in my motor oven just the hot air blowing over the coils will dry it off and reduce the chances of the motor shorting out soon because of moisture.


What type of lubrication should I use on a squeaky swing set?

Since this is exterior, and I'd be too lazy to oil it after the first time, I'd use grease. It's the preferred maritime lubricant, and that's good enough for me.

White Lithium Grease –joneakes.com

  Lithium Grease is that thick white grease you often find packed into bearing housings. It is the workhorse of the lubricants and can take high temperatures and pressures. If you have a grease housing which will hold extra grease, using a thick lithium grease from a tube or a can is the best thing to do. They have now come out with Lithium spray greases. These are great for outdoor uses, tending to be thicker and stay put longer under the rigors of outdoor conditions than other sprays, but they are not intended to replace the even thicker grease that you pack into a gear box. They are definitely a grease and will stain clothing as well as attract dust when used openly, so although a great lubricant, not the best product for a bicycle chain. Be sure to shake the can well before using.

Google search: Marine Lubricant/Grease


How do I determine if the energy savings are worth replacing windows for?

I have been told but have no first hand knowledge that the way low E windows work is the coating is somewhat directional in the sense that they reflect summer solar energy because the sun in higher in the sky.Winter solar energy is allowed to pass thru because the sun is lower compared to the horizon.A simplified explanation is it works similar to a louvered window blind that is partially opened.Because of the complexity of the formulas needed I would contact your local utility company about a free energy audit.If the windows are dual paned now it may be possible to just have the film applied to your current windows.


new railings - should I use cedar or treated pine?

Interior? Exterior? I'll assume exterior, since you're even considering pressure-treated wood. Cedar generally stands up to weathering considerably better than untreated pine does - hence the cedar siding & roofing all across the USA, but treated pine weathers reasonably well, too. It does like to split a little. Either will require careful priming with shellac before any painting... except you can't paint pressure-treated wood for about the first year after installation.

Last... this is for a working handrail? Based upon nothing other than the fact that a pressure-treated splinter in the hand is worlds away more painful than a cedar splinter in the hand, there's just no question: go with the cedar.


Junction box down-sizing when using oversized conduit

Don't worry about it. Just use the standard C-type conduit body, which is designed to exclusively be an access point for pulling in a straightline section.   That is literally its one purpose, so obviously, UL wouldn't list it if it couldn't comply with Code.  As far as your frustration finding the right thing, the caliber of your work is beyond the local big-box store (which, ironically, doesn't do well stocking big boxes) -- you need the real electrical supply.

You can use C-type conduit bodies anywhere they will remain accessible.   However, the better plan, generally, is to use LB, LL or LR conduit bodies as access points instead.  That lets you kill 2 birds with one stone: it eliminates one of your four allowed 90 bends while also creating an access point.  However, when you do this, you must use the access point to pull - you are not allowed to drag wires around conduit body corners even if that is feasible.  They're not made for it and will damage the insulation.  The only corners you can drag around are sweeps that have typically a 6-12" radius.

Also, the first rule of conduit is that the conduit route must be finished before you start pulling wire through it.  That's not a Harper Rule, that's actual Code.  I mention that because it sounds like you are building the conduit over top of the wires. That's not allowed. It's too easy to leave a conduit route that is unpullable.

Once somebody used one of these to go around an inside corner - the cover was facing the wall and could not be removed. Can't do that! And obeying the "pull the wire after construction is complete" rule takes care of that!


How to finish the broken edge of my exposed brick wall?

I would consider putting molding around the door and turning over the face of the brick. I would use a jamb-like board perpendicular to the wall and the door, and make its width flush with the face of the brick. Then add a small flat board parallel to the wall overhanging the door side of the jamb by about 1/8 inch and the brick just wide enough to cover the broken edges (maybe 1 1/2 inches). Paint it to match the door and it will look like part of the door frame.

I would fill the gaps between the door and brick with exterior foam sealant. Just be careful since this expands and you don'r want so much that it warps the door frame. Apply it, trim it flush, then do the molding.


You can seal off the exterior vent if you are adding a fan that pushes air in and out of the crawlspace (air circulation, mimicking what that outside vent does).  However, those vents are passive and require no power, so why not leave it open and seal it off when temperatures drop below 15-20 degrees Fahrenheit?

You would not gain much from insulating the walls with a rigid foam board. Your best bet would be to insulate under your floor with an R-30 or higher fiberglass batt insulation.  That will seal your home tight with insulation from the bottom, while still allowing your crawl space to function properly with ventilation.


What should I know before having bathroom fixtures installed?

Sounds like you pulled out some butterfly anchors instead of unscrewing them, or even large molly type.

What I do in situations like this is to install a decorative BOARD behind the towel rack or toilet paper holder, on the surface of the drywall, which screws directly into studs. This can simply be a piece of 1X4 with routed or finished edges, or baseboard or crown molding in 3 inch or larger width, painted white or the wall color. If desired, continue around the room at a single height, making this look like a standard feature similar to the top of chair rail decoration.

Install this with screws long enough to reach into the studs behind the drywall, I typically use 3 inch long self drilling screws. If you don't want the screw heads to show, spackle over them or use caulk before painting. The baseboard or molding typically can be found in 3 inch or larger widths, cut to length as needed, providing enough room to install the racks or fixtures on it. The racks can then can screw into this. This eliminates any unsightly holes or bad patching that might be present, as the board goes right over them. Studs are typically 16 inches on center, use a stud finder to locate them. For the toilet paper holder, if the board is attached by screws into one stud firmly, and the other end is installed with butterfly anchors, it should never come off the wall.

The exception would be a block wall behind the drywall, which probably would have furring strips holding it up. You'd then be able to use a drill and concrete anchors with longer screws to hold up either the board, or the racks themselves.


Where new roof shingles meet old, how to fix poor seal?

Get a caulking tube of asphalt flashing cement at the hardware store and put a 1/8-3/16 inch bead of it under each tab. Use good judgement, and leave enough space at the shingle edges so that the cement doesn't squeeze out.


single zone house with forced hot water only heating on one side

99.5% you need to bleed somewhere you haven't found yet, or you need to bleed more. It's almost always an air bubble.

0.3% there's a misadjusted valve to blame. If you don't know what a balancing valve looks like it may not be obvious that it is a valve.

0.2% there's an actual blockage. I've seen a 1/2" pipe elbow that had less than 1/16" space for flow due to some VERY enthusiastic soldering (it was nearly plugged with solder), in the bizarre examples line. But this is chasing the tiny odds.

Another possible blockage - if it got really cold before you turned the heat on, there's a frozen section on the one side. In some houses that's more like 25% odds due to terrible heating system design and poor insulation.

If you can't sort it yourself, calling in a pro can make sense before things DO freeze up.


I would try starting a short cycle and keep an eye on the drain that's inside the garbage disposal.  I have seen the short piece of drain line plug up with rice before.  Did you have a bunch of rice last meal?  Otherwise just let the short cycle run and peek into the disposal when you hear a drain cycle begin.  Also some units have filters at the bottom, you might want to check for that.


Either the holes to secure the strike plate became very worn and the technician decided to "rivet" it into place or it might be a security addition. Drill those out using a small bit and keep increasing in size until the rivet falls out. You might find that the threads still exist so be careful and you might not have to use rivets to reinstall the strike plate.


What kind of exterior paint has a fine sand paper-like backing, is it a primer?

I believe what you think of as paint is actually a skim coat.
Skim coats used for covering stone and concrete may have the paint or a pigment mixed in.
Your photo is not clear to me and I originally did not open the question because I don’t know of a paint that is like cardboard.
I do know (cement & sand) or other stucco like coatings have been used to cover stone and concrete and make a “new” looking finish.
In some cases when the skim coat is getting weathered folks painted them and
Sears used to have an “elastic” or rubber like coating that worked on “everything” if you were to believe the salesman but this was +30? Years back possibly put on top of a skim coat it might feel that way today I don’t know any one that purchased that product but believe the “sand” base is what is left of a skim coat.


How important is Tyvek/house wrap for a house with metal siding?

While I don't doubt that your father 'never installed a house wrap for a metal building in his life' I have to wonder how many of them were residences? Buildings with walls that trap moisture or where higher efficiency insulation is often needed? Bare and exposed insulation on the inside doesn't count.

Wrap is about what is INSIDE the wrap, not what is OUTSIDE the wrap. Tyvek lets moisture out while not letting air in or moisture in. Tar paper was the old school solution but it blocks air and moisture in both directions. Tyvek or other similar modern building is needed for insulated walls with poor circulation, metal or no metal.


Lawn Sprinkler's water pressure is low in one zone

Manually operate the valves until you find the zone that isn't working right. It might be a solenoid, but usually those are an "all or nothing" failure. Solenoids can fail electrically or mechanically. The coils can short out and/or the plunger itself can get stuck.  Once you find the failing zone you can further diagnose what's going on with it. And we can help better with more info.
Co-incidentally I have a zone valve right now that is stuck open.  So I had to shut down the supply. Probably fix it tomorrow.  Almost certainly a stuck solenoid.
Pictures and more information on the zone valves will enable us to help you better.
You are lucky, IMHO, to get 20 years out of zone valves without service.  They must have been pretty high quality to start with.


Hard wiring a 4-wire oven to 3-wire outlet?

Sounds like a problem, but need more info
It sounds like you had an improper hot => hot, hot => white-normally-neutral-used-as-hot and neutral+ground => ground. If that's what you actually have, then it is a messed up version of the older style (not normally allowed now, but grandfathered in for some situations if done correctly) hot/hot/neutral connection, but using a 2-wire + ground cable instead of a 3-wire cable.
If I am correct, that means:

Ground is carrying the neutral load for the 120V controls. Ground is not supposed to carry any load except under fault conditions.
Wire colors are non-standard. White is supposed to be neutral, not hot.

I am also concerned that if someone cheated on the type of cable, they may also have cheated on the size of the wires. The actual wire gauge that you need will depend on the circuit - 30A vs. 40A vs. 50A., but the typical ordinary 2-wire + ground cable is often 12 gauge for 20A or 14 gauge for 15A and definitely not safe for 30A or more.
Before doing anything else, you need to find out the actual circuit requirements for the new oven. Check the oven manual - and post the model # here so we can take a look too. Then check the breaker or fuse to see if it meets those requirements. It needs to be big enough - to avoid nuisance trips - but not any bigger than it is supposed to be, so that it can provide the proper protection.
Whether or not the breaker is correct, I have a feeling you will need a new 4-wire (hot/hot/neutral/ground) cable to replace the existing cable. There is a possibility that a 3-wire connection (hot/hot/ground) may be OK, but we can't tell without more information.
If the existing 3-wire cable (2 insulated wires + ground) is sufficient, then the question is whether it is thick enough. You can check a wire chart, but the key numbers are typically:

15A - 14 gauge
20A - 12 gauge
30A - 10 gauge
40A - 8 gauge
50A - 6 gauge

There should be markings on the existing cable, or measure the wire directly.
Using a high-current breaker with wire that is not rated for that current is against code and DANGEROUS.


Replacing single pole switch (w/one screw on each side) w/ single pole switch w/2 screws on right/1 on left

This screw on the new switch is where you are supposed to connect the safety ground wire.

The following two screws on the new switch are where the switch wires connect. These would be the two wires that each connected one or the other side of the old switch.


Is a tilted drywall joint at an angled roof intersection to be expected?

I'm assuming the drywall at the top was not installed by the contractor, and he simply added the new drywall against it.  In this case his point is definitely valid, old drywall is going to be tough to butt up against, especially a slanted ceiling.  I'd just paint this and move on with life.  There is nothing structurally wrong done here, and I highly doubt anyone is going to notice, much less make a purchasing decision based on this!


An ABC extinguisher would be my choice I carry one on my truck and 2 in my boat. They will put out everything but electrical & magnesium, kill the electrical first then the fire will not be electrical.
Magnesium takes a special chemical in the service it was called purple K .
ABC will put most things out quickly, last week we had a  Fire In a field just after a major power bump.
I was the first one there and with 1 medium fire extinguisher i was able to knock down the circle of about 40’ by using short controlled shots.
Where it started back up I was able to stomp it out, until our fire truck got there and we soaked the entire area down.
Even a small extinguisher can put out a decent sized fire with control. For home or office use I recommend ABC type extinguishers.


What kind of drill bit would I use to grind down the end of a protruding screw?

A protruding screw head is made of steel, so it will be moderately hard. If the screw is brass, it would be easy to grind down. You have several options.

With 1/4 inch remaining above the surface, I might first cut it down rather than grinding it all down. A piece of hacksaw blade will suffice, held in my hand flat against the surface to avoid damaging the wood. Leave a little stub that can be dealt with easily.
A grindstone bit, for use in an electric drill. This can be found in any hardware store, probably made of aluminum oxide, and possibly a 1/4 inch shank. Smaller ones for a Dremel tool will have a 1/8 inch shank, but I'd get the larger one. It will last longer, and fit in any electric drill, so no Dremel required.
You can use a high speed steel or carbide burr to do the grinding too. But aluminum oxide is harder than steel, and far cheaper than carbide.
Use a bimetal blade in an oscillating multitool. While I have found many uses for this tool, the blades are incredibly expensive and will wear out quickly when cutting steel. (There are titanium coated bimetal blades that will last longer, but they are not at all cheap, and may not fit on every model multitool. For example, no titanium blades are available for my Porter Cable tool.)
Sandpaper on a sanding block, as suggested by one answer is an option, but sanding down a 1/4 inch steel stub will take some time and probably tear the paper into shreds (as well as the sanding block.) So I would definitely shorten the stub using a hacksaw blade first. A belt sander will also do the job here, again be careful as it might tear the belt.


There is a way to tweak the hinges to move the door up or down, but its for small amounts like 1/16", not 1/4". It's better to just move the strike plate. However, if the door is sagging 1/4", then the top of the door must be sagging down from the header jamb and leaves a giant gap between the top of door and jamb. Also, the top edge of the door must be rubbing badly against the jamb. If this is occurring, you'll want to re-secure hinges (re-tighten all screws) and re-plumb the door.

Best way to move strike plate is to chisel the jamb out to receive the strike plate and then reset the strike plate. I'd also cut a small piece of wood,the amount you moved the strike plate down (1/4"), and glue it into frame to match rest of frame. (Then do a little touch-up of paint or stain to match rest of frame.)

The hinge should not be loose enough to pick it up 1/4" or so. Re-screw all the hinges down tight before you move the strike plate.


You will have to trace the wires.
You can look at How exactly does a 3-way switch work?.
You should replace the remaining 3 way with a regular single switch and wire it normally to the light fixture.


How long does paint have to dry before I can tape over it?

We try wait at least 12 hours and use Orange core tape (delicate, low tact) and often we still get a little pull off. Don't leave the tape on any longer than you have to and pull it at an extreme angle to the wall or trim.  Obviously, the longer you can wait to tape over fresh paint the better, but we don't have a lot of time on a job to wait for the paint to cure. Trim paints tend to pull off more than wall paints, so we break the common rules and do walls first, trim second.  Also, small touch ups on egg shell or flat wall paint is easier than touch-ups on semi-gloss trim.

In hot humid weather and rush jobs, we use fans and dehumidifiers to speed the curing process. This helps a lot. Under optimal conditions, we can tape after maybe 4 hours and do second coats in the same day.

Side note:  Use only good grade paints with proper prep. Cheap paint will peel off with your tape even after days of drying.


Pressure treated wood now requires special coated nails (or cable staples). Depending on the exact type of pressure coating, different types of nails are acceptable. It's best to just use stainless steel and be safe...a few won't break the bank. I've heard of a house being torn down because they used uncoated nails and joist hangers.


How many problems does my shed's 240V receptacle have?

The problematic receptacle

Use of a NEMA 10 family receptacle is illegal today.  It was always illegal with that cable type, which is a "/2 + ground" type, for reasons I go into in comments on George Anderson's answer.  Use of SE cable was legal, but only to help dealers use up their remaining stocks.  So the NEMA 10 must go; you don't have the right cable for it, and so it's not grandfathered.

Install a universal junction box.

I would fit a 4-11/16" square steel box there, set about 4" lower on the wall. (to give you the legally required wire length.  Note that in your installation, wire length is precious; don't CUT wires off the old recep, unscrew them).

For wire length, you need 6-1/4" past the cable clamp; plus 3" beyond the surface of the wall.

Then, on the 4-11/16" square box, add a 1-gang mud ring (not a dome).  That will you give you a 1-gang space for any recep, and also LOTS OF ROOM behind the box for GFCI, AFCI, bulky receps etc.  You also have space to change to a 2-gang mud ring, to allow GFCI + second recep.  The box also has room for extending wiring to other points of use e.g. lights.

Fit the receps you want

Once that universal box is in, fit whatever receps you want:

For 240V, a NEMA 6-30.  OR
For 120V @ 30A, a NEMA TT30, or L5-30
For 120V @ 20A, the common 5-20 or dual 5-15.

You must choose 120V or 240V.  You can't have both unless you add a subpanel and a proper 120-240--240/480V supply transformer, which will give you both, totaling 7,200W.  You can also go "two transformers" which will give you 14,400W or up to 18,000W.  The cost of these will rise exponentially with increasing power because of size and scarcity of the transformers.

Now change the breaker (mandatory)

According to Code, the breaker size must match the receptacle size.  (with one exception: if the circuit has two or more 15A sockets, a 20A breaker is allowed.)

I recommend a 2-pole, 20A or 30A breaker, because it'll fill the hole completely.  A 1-pole breaker is $5 and a 2-pole is $10.  A blanking plate is $3 + $50 of your time just running around trying to find somebody who has the darn thing in stock (won't be a big-box store).   So I use breakers to fill empty holes.

Also do not under any circumstances buy a 30A, 1-pole breaker.  They are completely useless for any application except certain small travel trailers (which take a TT30).  If you need one, buy a 30A/2-pole instead, which  have many applications.  You'll thank me later.

The 60A breaker is perfectly usable and about $10 to buy a new one. They're good for subpanels or bigger EVSE's. Do with it what you will.


What can cause a never-frozen indoor copper drain pipe to crack?

I would inspect the entire property for more such pipe and replace any that was found.  That's almost certainly a manufacturing defect and likely to be pending failure wherever that batch of pipe was used.

That is not a natural crack, nor a corrosion crack, it's too straight and uniform.

Typical "natural" cracks look like:

Possible ways it could have formed:

There was a defect/contamination in the extrusion die for that batch of pipe, propagating weakness down the length of pipe as it was extruded.
The pipe was rolled rather than extruded and then poorly joined (trying to make it look seamless).
Something/someone else uniformly scored the length of the pipe before it was installed.

Then after some years of thermal cycles and possibly mild corrosion, a crack formed and rapidly propagated along the rest of the weak line.


Testing older anti-scald valve for correct function?

I don't see why not. Better safe than sorry. Can you get new parts if it's broken though or even a cartridge insert, might be the real question.


What material should I use to hide a duct running just above the floor in a closet?

I have used 1x2’s as the frame around ducts and plywood to make a shoe rack.
I usually use Sheetrock/ drywall to close in ceiling mounted ducts. No one knew or will know it is a duct if you disguise it and make it wide enough it become a feature.
I am sure you could use Sheetrock. make sure to have a shelf over it and there is less chance someone would step on it


Is this 6 circuits inside a Raceway that calls for 50% deratement?

The NEC doesn't impose a derate until you get to 24"

NEC 310.15(B)(3)(a) (essentially replicated for you in PEC 3.10.1.15(b)(2)) does not impose any derating factors for raceways (nipples, really) shorter than 600mm (24"), such as yours:

  (a) More than Three Current-Carrying Conductors. Where the
  number of current-carrying conductors in a raceway or cable
  exceeds three, or where single conductors or multiconductor
  cables are installed without maintaining spacing for a continuous length longer than 600 mm (24 in.) and are not installed
  in raceways, the allowable ampacity of each conductor shall be
  reduced as shown in Table 310.15(B)(3)(a). Each current-carrying conductor of a paralleled set of conductors shall be
  counted as a current-carrying conductor.

So, you do not need to worry about this derate for your application, since the raceway routing would need to be quite convoluted to exceed 24".

However, you have two problems here

First off, the normal sequence of events is that the raceway is installed first and wires then pulled through it -- this avoids causing inordinate damage to wire insulation by gouging it with the ends of raceway sections or the edges of boxes. You'll need to very carefully pull the wires back inside the subpanel box for now until you have the raceway installed.

Furthermore, and more importantly, you have a problem here -- surface mounting the subpanel put you in a situation where the raceway needs to make an offset bend ("dog leg" or "S-bend") to get from a knockout in one panel to a knockout in the other.  This is especially troublesome for you for two reasons:

Conduit bends have a quite wide radius, especially for fat conduit like the 3" you are using
Conduit bodies (including L bodies and pull elbows) must be openable without removing finish materials, just like you cannot drywall over a junction box

Furthermore, that giant 3" nipple is going to cause issues if you flush-mount the subpanel (due to the fact that it will split any stud in the way clean in half).  The idea of bringing it in via the front of the main panel doesn't work either, because that'd cause merry heck if the main panel's deadfront had to be removed later for servicing (in fact, I'd call it a violation of NEC 314.22's Exception).


Go out a door that's not blocked and walk to the blocked one to clear the snow.

If all your doors are blocked go out a window and do the same.

If it's a screen door, remove the screen and reach through the opening to move the snow.  You can use a broom or even a pot or baking pan if your don't have a shovel within reach.


Can I use fiberglass shower drain for tile base?

The Oatey 1-1/2" shower drain is designed specifically for this type of application. It looks similar to your first photo and you won't have to use a 2" to 1-1/2" reducer.

If you need more adjustment, you could go with a Pro-Flo adjustable shower drain.


Is it the control board or is it the induction fan?

It's likely the control board
Since the inducer motor's winding is still intact (as we know from it reading a low resistance), and no voltage makes it there, we can be pretty sure that your control board's failed; either it's not sequencing the inducer motor, or the relay that the board uses to the turn the inducer on and off has failed.  Either way, generic replacement control boards are available for most reasonably modern furnaces these days, so a decent HVAC tech should be able to get the furnace up and running in no time.


As pointed out in the comment, you can of course do it with a basic triangle calculator.

Do yourself a huge favor and buy a speed square. They are $10 and are useful for so many things beyond just marking an angle on a board.


Buy a 6-port keystone jack plate, one blank (or plate may include 5 blanks) and the other connectors you want - it's a modular system. You click in the jacks you want.


Looks like the sap is coming out of a board from the heat of the attic.


My radon manometer has a red reading, what should I do?

To check if the fan is working, you can put a plastic bag over the end of the exhaust pipe and see if it inflates.

Gauge oil is just the orange fluid that goes in the manometer (pressure meter) tube that indicates the pressure difference being driven by the fan. If it is missing or low, then it could give the negative reading. It should go to zero when the fan if off (as long as the wind isn't blowing too hard).

Even if the bag inflates, it may not be creating a strong enough pressure difference, so you should make sure there is the proper amount of gauge oil in the manometer.


Why "extra" power disconnect for small HVAC unit?

Disconnects are required when the equipment is too far from, or not within sight of the breaker (or branch circuit disconnect) (commonly known as "Serviceman disconnects" or "Serviceman switches").  This is required so that while you're working on the equipment, it's less likely somebody will accidentally energize the equipment (flip the breaker on).

National Electrical Code 2014
Chapter 4 Equipment for General Use
Article 440 Air-conditioning and Refrigerating Equipment
440.14 Location. Disconnecting means shall be located within sight from and readily accessible from the air-conditioning or refrigerating equipment. The disconnecting means shall be permitted to be installed on or within the air-conditioning or refrigerating equipment.
The disconnecting means shall not be located on panels that are designed to allow access to the air-conditioning or refrigeration equipment or to obscure the equipment nameplate(s).

Fuses are used for overload protection, mostly for motors. The fuse is typically sized to the motor load it's protecting, and may or may not be a different size than the circuit breaker. If a motor can't spin, it will quickly overload, overheat, and burn up. A fuse is used to prevent that.
For more information on protecting the equipment, and sizing the protection. See the rest of article 440. As Mjohns answer points out, the manufacturer's documentation rules, so make sure you read and understand it.


You can repair it but you're not going to be able to match the wood decor grain - which means you'll have to paint it.
There are a few different products you can use but I like Bondo. It's basically the same stuff they use for auto body repair. It looks like there is enough backing in the hole that you shouldn't need anything but the Bondo, a putty knife and a few sheets of sandpaper. Apply it according to directions trying not to overfill it too much since you'll want to sand it smooth with the door. After it dries start with about a 120 grit sandpaper or sanding block to take off most of the excess and finish with a 220 or higher grit to finish. If there are any hollows in the patch you can apply more Bondo after it's dry. It will be difficult to get the patch to totally disappear but with patience and going over it a few times you can get it very close.
It's hard to tell the material in the picture but you may need a good prime coat to get the adhesion and consistency you'll want with the paint.


Grounding requirements for multipanel, multiservice installation

Use bare copper ground wires.

Grounds don't need insulation, so don't waste the fill.

Consider using copper feeder.

Copper? For feeder!!??  Weird, I know.  Copper is expensive and a poor conductor by most measures.  But when conduit fill is the scarce commodity, volume is the measure that counts - and by that measure, copper is the best conductor on earth by volume because it is so very dense. (well silver is like 2% better, a negligible gain for extreme cost, so not worth mentioning, just as we don't mention sodium is 5% better than aluminum and also explodes).

For thermal derate, only count wires that count.

For fill, all wires count. But thermally...

If 2 wires together, by design, cannot flow more ampacity than 1 wire is rated for, they count as 1 wire:

You're not allowed to intentionally use ground for current, so grounds don't count.
In split-phase or MWBC, neutral only handles differential current. Neutral current + the lesser hot conductor must = the greater hot conductor.  So neutral doesn't count in these.

Unless it's a "2 hots out of 3, + neutral" circuit in 3-phase power. There, the neutral has some current with 2 hots maxed, so neutral counts there.

The 2 travelers together, only 1 is hot at a time, so the 2 count as 1.

In almost all cases, this boils down to 2 wires per circuit.

Derate off the highest the wire can run.

There's a table, 310.15(B)(16), which gives wire ampacities based on thermal ratings.  Different wires have different ratings, and so do terminations.

Say you come off a 75C breaker using 90C wire to a 60C NEMA socket.  What ampacity can you breaker for?  The 60C number, because the socket is the limiting factor.
But when you're doing conduit fill derate,  what ampacity do you derate off of?  60C? No, the socket is not inside the conduit. 75C? Ditto.  You derate off 90C.

So let's say you have #3 Cu THWN with 6 conductors that count. 80% derate off 115A (90C) = 92A derate. Round up to the next size breaker, that's 100A breaker.  Suppose your EVSE is 79 amps, 92A can definitely carry 79A. You must derate the EVSE 125% so 98.75A, and boom! 100A breaker.  Everything is happy.

Don't run neutral to things that don't need neutral

EVSE's don't need neutral. At least if an EVSE needs neutral, don't buy it. Because that's just super lazy on their part, they're saving 50 cents buying a 120V-only controls power supply instead of a 120+240V one.

Garage lights also don't need 120+240V split-phase.  If you really have a 2880 watt light, run 240V only and evict the neutral from the pipe.

"Oh, but I'll have a subpanel there" -- then you need to use good "design language" to communicate to subsequent morons that there is no neutral here.  First, add an accessory ground bar to the subpanel, and use it for grounds and not the factory supplied neutral bar.  Second, I would make a sign out of heavy cardboard and cut it with little comb fingers that can go into the neutral bar, and the sign says "No 120V loads! Neutral Not Available In This Panel" or something like that.  For bonus points, remove all the lug bolts from the neutral bar.  You've done your part. If someone insists on sticking a 120V load in that panel, not your problem.

What's the "main" panel doing so far from its meter?

I am wiggy about the idea of coming off the meter with a long, unfused run to the EVSE main panel in the garage. I can't cite chapter and verse but I bet that is not Code.  Putting the EVSE main panel at the meter will cause this run to become a branch circuit and not a service, and the no-neutral 240V makes more sense.  At that point you don't go to any panel, you simply go to the EVSE directly. (unless you want to stop at a fat surge suppressor first).

I am also uncomfortable mixing service 1's service wires with service 2's branch circuit wires.  That seems like it may be a codevio, but again I can't quite chapter and verse.

Multiple services can use the same Grounding Electrode System.

I have 2 services sitting right next to each other that grab the same Ufer ground.  Their EMT conduit web connects not only to each other but to the 480V service as well.  And they're on a metal building.  I couldn't separate them without really trying, and if I tried, all I'd do is create shock risk across the insulating pads.

Dump the lighting branch. Power it out of the existing garage sub.

That little light switch is a lot of trouble.  You need 3 wires (2 travelers 1 return) to power that thing.  But that's what it takes before smart switches came along.

So convert the garage light to a smart switch (out at the garage).  Use a partner smart switch inside the house that uses either wireless or powerline signaling (make sure it's fed by the same pole in your panel).

If that doesn't work, go to a "Plan B".  Replace the three #14s with three #18s, and control the light from a GE RR7 relay in the garage.  Now you can wire it in the conduit in #18 wire (though still NM-B outside the conduit).  The switches get replaced with momentary-on switches. Pushing up throws the relay "on". Pushing down throws the relay "off".  Do not use standard 3-ways, which are on 24x7 and will overheat the relay.

Here's the trick.  This is low voltage (24V) wiring. You're not allowed to put low-voltage wiring in the same pipe with mains wiring unless all of the low-voltage wiring is contained within Class I wiring methods rated for 120/240V. That means you can throw #18's in the conduit, but you can't run 18/3 thermostat cable outside the conduit to the switches - for that you must switch to 14/3 NM-B, which is a Class I wiring method.