If the drill is a few years older as you mentioned i would say its likely NOT a brushless motor, in fact everything i was able to research says nothing about it being brushless, so its safe to assume it is NOT, that being said its the motor. I know you said its got low miles and i believe you, unfortunatley you just had some bad luck and for whatever reason your motor is giving out. Fortunatley for you most traditional brushed motors can easily be replaced and put back to work. Unfortunatley while doing my research i didnt come arcoss any vendors that still had these particular motors in stock. So if you can find it then your all set to go, if not than youll be shopping for a replacment within the week. My advice would be to take it slow and treat her like the smallest bump will be the last bump... because it probably will.


What you want is called a "pin spanner wrench".  I've never seen that on a switchplate but they are commonly used in autos and motorcycles.

This type of wrench comes in many styles. For reference here is one that is adjustable and comes with inserts to accommodate various pin hole sizes.

Picture Source


no - the LSU hangers sit over the end of a square cut joist or rafter.  they wont work if you cut them on an angle.


Those are almost certainly seams between sheets of drywall that are either settling or have suffered moisture damage. (By far the most likely is settling, but since there's a window above, I wouldn't rule out moisture.)

Check the exterior and interior on the window above to see if there's any evidence of leakage.

Otherwise, you could re-tape, texture, and paint, but that's a lot of time for not a lot of benefit.


How do I wire a light switch that has 2 switches wired in but should only use 1?

Based on what you've been able to discern so far -- the black wire in cable #1 is from switch #1 and the red wire in cable #1 is from switch #2.  Cable #2 goes off to the other two kitchen lights and cable #3 goes off to the pot lights.

This means that for the configuration you want, connect:

the black from cable #1 to the black from cable #2 and the black from the light
the red from cable #1 to the black from cable #3
and all the white wires together.


This answer assumes two things; first your #1 priority is a consistent look and second, it's important enough that you are willing to get creative.

Thermopiles generate a small electric current using heat from the pilot light. This current powers an electromagnetic valve that controls the gas. It has been rightly stated that this low-voltage circuit cannot be controlled using the desired digital switch. The circuit requires a single-pole, single-throw mechanical switch.

Here's my solution. Take your brand new Maestro switch and gut it. All you need is the visible exterior and the case that houses the digital goodies. Once the guts are removed, you will need to mount a latching push button switch in the case. This must be done in such a manner that pushing the touch plate will actuate the switch.

I recommend securing the switch into position by filling the case with hot glue. Take a section of open-cell foam that is slightly thicker than the distance required to actuate the switch. Foam is often used for padding in packaging of electronics and optics and such. You have to be resourceful here, find some foam about 1/4" thick. The purpose of the foam is to hold the touch plate in position while allowing the plate to be pushed, actuating the switch. Cut a hole in the foam where the pushbutton will be, glue the foam to the case, then glue the touch plate to the foam.

The finished product will look identical to your other digital switches while allowing operation of your fireplace without external power... all with a simple push on, push off function. Good luck Martin, I hope this helps.


We have the same brand and it is a PITA. It needs to keep the air moving inside the case. If the air does not circulate it will create the problem you have. There is in ours, a charcoal filter that needs to be changed every 6 months, otherwise it restricts the airflow. Items inside the fridge part needs to be away from the back wall and the filter so air moves.

The logic is, yes the fridge part is cold enough, the struggling freezer part can maintain the 38 or so degrees to keep the fridge proper, but without circulation, the freezer can't do what it needs to get down to 0 degrees.

If yours has a charcoal filter remove it and the temp should return to normal. It will cause no harm, I had to do it myself and I ordered filters online to replace it.


framing feedback for ground level deck 10'x22'

Have you considered a floating deck - a.k.a. "Dek Blocks"? That makes a totally DIY project, and depending on location, either no permits or minimal permits. No concrete to pour, no digging. Deck sits on special blocks instead of being anchored to footings. Deck is not attached to house. There are height limitations, but 13" is effectively "nothing" (or ground-level as you stated).
I have no affiliation with the manufacturer - just built one myself (with my evil twin helping) several years ago, 14' x 14'.


How to attach a bolt down post support to a fast set concrete post built with

If you haven't poured concrete yet, use "anchor bolts". (Ref: Simpson Strong-Tie Model # SSTB16-R, for a visual, though it's probably too long and wrong diameter.) I'd use ones around 12-16" long and as big a diameter as will fit. Get galvanized. Bolt them into the base (nut on top and bottom) and use that to maintain alignment while the concrete sets. Once the concrete has set, remove all the nuts, set the base, shim as necessary with metal washers, and bolt it down. For bonus points, add concrete below the base after shimming but before final bolt down.

I can't remember if you have a section of fence adjacent to the gate, but do your best to tie everything together as much as possible. Gates are hard on posts.


How do I seal around a door to make the opening more sound-proof?

You need to look into the sound seals used on STC rated doors.
My apologies i forgot about  this so you can get some relief as follows.
You can purchase kits that consist of an automatic door sweep and perimeter seals.
example www.acousticalsolutions.com/door-seal-kits


The new GE blower motor is missing an orange wire, how to connect it properly?

The 4 wires coming out of and returning to to motor are for reversing the rotation of the motor. If you unplug them and switch them the rotation will switch. The yellow wire is most likely the common wire. The others are speed taps. Red is low, blue is medium and black is high (usually). The two browns go to the capacitor. I would need to see the wiring diagram to be sure but that is the usual wiring setup on furnaces. The orange wire was most likely medium high.


Replace existing phone jack with network cable

Go fishing
If you're a really lucky person, you might be able to use a fish tape to follow the path of the phone cable.  However, this means running the fish tape through the wall or ceiling, and hitting a small hole in the framing.  Without being able to see what you're doing, you'll just be poking around in the dark, trying to hit a hole of unknown size.

If you want to attempt this, the procedure is as follows:

Run the fish tape up the wall, or down the ceiling cavity.
Poke around until it slides into the hole through the top plate.
continue to feed the fish tape, until it pops out the other end.
Attach the new cable to the end of the fish tape.
Pull the fish tape back out the way it went in.

Open access
The "easier" option, is to cut one or two small access holes. This will allow you to drill new hole(s) through the framing members, and let you see what you're doing while running the cable.
While running the cable, you're going to encounter at least one framing member. Right at the top of the wall, there will be a top plate. Which will consist of either a single, or doubled up piece of lumber laying flat across the top of the wall. In some situations, you might also have fireblocking, or other obstructions within the wall. You'll want to use a stud finder, to try and locate an obstructions along the route.
If you're only dealing with a top plate, you'll want to cut an access hole just below/above the corner of the room.

This hole should be just large enough to fit a flexible drill bit, to allow you to drill through the top plate.

Once you have the hole through the top plate, fishing the cable is easy.

Feed a fish tape up from the lower hole in the wall, to the upper hole.
Feed the fish tape up through the hole in the top plate.
Feed the fish tape through the ceiling, until it comes out where you have access.
Attach the cable to the fish tape.
Retrieve the fish tape and cable.
Patch the hole(s) in the wall/ceiling.


Are louvered bedroom doors allowed by code?

The only INTERIOR door mentioned in the code is the door between the garage and an interior room in the house. (The code requires it to be fire rated...basically it needs to be solid core, the frame needs to have rabbeted frames (no applied stops), side hinged and it must have a latch...not a catch.)

EXTERIOR doors need to have a certain energy rating.

IMHO I think you should sleep with the door open, so you can hear the smoke alarm in the hall.


Replace the chime, the coil is toast from the shorted wires when you weren’t home.

Open circuit voltage with the circuit at rest being 19-20 is nothing to worry about.   (a doorbell is a momentary load device, the circuit is at rest 99.99% of the time.  I avoided other terms like "open" and "closed" to describe the circut but based on your comment still confused.)


How should I deal with pine needles falling from tree onto roof?

Metal roofing will shed pine needles far better than asphalt shingles will. Still, trimming the tree is your best option, particularly since the skylights will make an area where the debris is easily trapped.
Putting "crickets" (peaked flashing) above them as for a chimney might reduce that somewhat .vs. the way they are now.


Why do my bulbs glow brighter when the microwave is running?

The problem was a bad neutral connection from the transformer on a pole.

I called the power company--they had trucks out to replace the power line within 30 minutes.

Now the power variation is very small.  Without the microwave running, I measure 117.5 volts on the lamp circuit and 118.2 volts on the microwave circuit.  With the microwave running, the voltages go to 118.2 and 114.0 VAC.


Is it safe to drill small holes in load-bearing concrete beams for expansion bolts?

You can actually punch surprising large holes in the middle of a beam without diminishing its load-bearing capacity.  This is because that capacity is largely a function of only the top and bottom portions of the beam and how far apart they are.

Engineered floor joists are a good example of this:

It would take a structural engineer to tell you exactly how much the load-bearing capacity will be reduced, but I can tell you that this amount will be at least an order of magnitude less than the margin for error in manufacturing the beam.

Don't worry about it.  It's what these things are made for.


Do AFCI/GFCI receptacles protect downstream circuits without equipment bonding conductor?

Yes, GFCI decices don't require a ground to function, they don't even use ground.

If current is following a third path, causing a trip, then who knows what the third path is?  We just know it shouldn't be there.  The assumption is that an unwitting human is the third path.  Maybe they're touching the equipment while leaning on a water pipe.

AFCI  is a totally different thing than GFCI.  GFCI protects humans from shock, AFCI protects the building from fires due to arcing wires in the walls. It does that by listening for the "hooking up your speakers with the power on" sound.  AFCI works best in the panel; it defeats the purpose to put it past the wires it's there to protect.


How to Run an Electrical Wire from a Breaker inside the house to the Deck

The item described as a "pull box" in the comments, is called a "Conduit Body".  But it will do nothing to seal the hole you'll drill through the house.

To seal around the conduit/cable, you can use Duct Seal.

As for all the other questions you've asked. You should post another question for those, and include a lot more details about the project.


With a manifold system, each branch has its own valve, so it is more common to not have a valve at the point of use.  If you are more comfortable with an additional valve next to the toilet, you can certainly add a typical 1/4 push-fit shut off valve.

If for some reason the manifold doesn't have individual valves or something is wrong with them, you would simply need to turn off the main water valve to the house so you could remove that straight fitting and replace it with a valve like you would do in an older home.


I want to install outlet on existing junction box

That box has plenty of room, but you need to be strategic in where you place the wire nuts.  There is a hollow in the middle of the box, and they should be pushed back down there.  It also helps to use a less bulky model of wire nut.  Ideal brand is popular among electricians.

As far as GFCI, don't put a GFCI here.  It's outdoors and the GFCI will quickly corrode and fail.

GFCI devices are able to protect a downline circuit, e.g. A GFCI circuit breaker does exactly that.   So follow this circuit back toward the ser ice panel.  If it makes a stop at an indoor receptacle, fit the GFCI there and place this downline on its LOAD terminals.  Many people use those terminals accidentally because they don't know any better; use them deliberately.  Or you can use a GFCI breaker.

Then, fit a plain receptacle here and place "GFCI Protected" stickers here and on any other receptacles that are now so protected. Those are included with the GFCI.

Lastly, fit an outdoor "in use" "waterproof" cover.  They don't work, but they're required by Code.  The GFCI inside the house will do the protecting of all the wire in this box including the LINE side wiring  (which a GFCI out here can't protect).


Is it dangerous to leave a hose spigot on with a closed nozzle at the end?

As long as the attached timer is shut off and no water is flowing the pressure in the water line will be no different than what it would be when the spigot is turned off.

You water bill will reflect how much water that you actually use. The only way it could go up astronomically would be if the timer broke off the spigot or failed in an open mode where water was allowed to flow freely from the spigot for long periods of time.


How do I replace a non-standard sized AC closet door?

I have done this before 28 x 54. Your door width is a standard size your 'custom' issue will be the height of the door. Return air duct at the floor with no baseboard .. odd .

Anyway you purchase a prefab indoor door unit and you cut it down to size where there is no paneling design inlays.

Mine just happened to work out nicely - these doors are typically hollow and have a 4 board outer frame - the thickness of the door - foam might be in certain parts but not all parts.

So After cutting mine in the correct spot -  simply separate the base frame of the bottom of the door (it is like 1 x 1 x door width) put glue in the hollow area of the door and on the 1 x 1 x door width piece - you slide that into the space and clamp it down between some 1 x 3's  - let it sit overnight to seal.

Now you have your door and you will need to make the frame or modify the frame you bought with your new door (that is what I did) and the return vent sizing on your wall to fit everything nicely.

So I made my return air vent and the mounting and layout and then installed my door frame - I knew the door size I had and measured everything and drew it all out on paper before I did anything. There is a 2 x 4 at the base of my door frame that goes across and the frame sits on it.

Below is the finished project - I did this about a year ago so I don't have the before pictures. I purchased my interior door and frame from Surplus Warehouse it cost me about $60.00 all inclusive.


I replaced my fluorescent light ballast but the bulbs turn off immediately

I check the lamps first prior to changing the ballast because lamps fail more often than ballasts. If the ballast is bad, I usually replace the tubes with ballast bypass LED lamps. Good quality lamps are around 10-11 bucks. Look for DLC certification. The lamps that are not DLC certified do not tend to last in my experience.

I like double-ended LEDs because these will work with shunted tombstones (the part that holds the lamp); with single-ended tombstones you will need to replace them if shunted. To tell if the tombstones are shunted, with the power off use an ohm meter and measure the resistance from the 2 contacts. If reading zero or very low ohms, they are shunted.

Last, purchase from a vendor that has a long warranty - 5 years is my target. Some companies have good no-hassle warranties where you take a photo of the fixture with a working and failed light and they give you a credit or refund. Some companies require you to ship the lamps back as they no one will pay almost as much to return a lamp - those are sham warranties in my opinion.

To install a ballast bypass set of lights double-ended, 1 wire from each tombstone at 1 end can be wire butted together with the hot and the other end and 1 wire from each tombstone nutted to the neutral. The ballast can be left in the fixture but the wires should be cut or removed from the ballast and capped, cutting close to the ballast provides all the wire needed in hundreds of fixtures I have upgraded. Ballast bypass lamps usually come with a sticker that states the fixture was rewired and not to use fluorescent bulbs.

Earlier I used the term DLC certified. This stands for Design Lights Consortium. With this certification, you know that your lamps are efficient (not all LEDs are created equal) and meet the quality standards. Most power companies that provide rebates for upgrades require the new lamps to be DLC certified to get the rebates if available. In my area it is close to 70% of the cost of the lamp so this can bring your final cost to that of  quality fluorescents and now you are saving $ on your power bill and they have longer expected life.

Since you have already replaced the ballast try some new lamps. If the ends of the lamps are black or dark the lamp electrodes are probably gone, this is assuming you installed the proper ballast type for the lamps in the fixture. Universal ballast refers to the input voltage only usually 100-277v. Not long ago a friend installed a universal ballast in a 4 tube t8 lamp fixture, the lights did not work because the ballast was for 2' fluorescents.

I hope this information helps you troubleshoot your problem and or upgrade your lights.


My sister had a condo and had very similar problems with the odor. It was the a.c. ducts actually installed in the ground with the foundation poured over then. They rusted out and that's where the musty smell came from. We ended up filling in the ducts and sealing them and running some new ducts on the ceiling and framing around them with drywall. If you have registers in the wall that might be why you think the odor is seeping in from them. Good luck.


Can I route an irrigation main through my basement?

In most US jurisdictions, from a legal perspective, the work in the basement would fall under the local building code and its permitting, licensing, and inspection requirements...e.g. a splinkler contractor could not run the pipes inside the house and a plumber would be required, building department fees would be applicable, etc.

The pipe running through the basement that conceptually would be part of the irrigation system, is both legally and from a life safety standpoint part of the domestic potable water supply [it may be possible to get the building department to treat it as a domestic non-potable system, but that's less likely than a flat "no" from the building department]. Even if you get it approved, you'd still want a vacuum break where the pipe exits the building and there's a risk of contamination.

Anyway from a practical standpoint, one thing you're facing is the standard practices of the irrigation installer tradebase. They own Ditchwitches and shovels. They don't usually dress for walking across homeowner carpets and aren't in the habit of pulling plumbing permits. This is pushing things outside their business model...and reducing their revenue. Maybe you see a portion of whatever savings the contractor realizes, maybe the contractor just passes on the job [it depends on how much work they have, and you want the person who is busy].


Can I take the cover off my fusebox to attach an energy monitor?

I would find some way to attach the measuring clamp around the live feed near the meter.

My house, as many do, has an external wall-box flush-mounted into an external brick wall. It used to look like this

Mine is a bit unusual in that the supply is three-phase rather than the more usual single-phase but the general layout is the same.

At bottom left is the incoming unmetered supply terminated at 100A (230V) supply fuses. You are not permitted to touch these.
Neutral and Live (usually one but three in my case) wires feed the meter.
You can see the after-meter live wire (marked with red tape) disappears off into the wall at top left.

There should always be enough room to attach a current sensing clamp over that wire. The wires are very stiff but you should be able to move them enough to attach a typical clamp around the live wire safely.

Inside my house, on the opposite side of the same wall, is a separate wall-mounted "consumer unit" inside a cupboard. These are often called a fuse-box although these distribution panels now contain miniature circuit breakers (MCBs) rather than fuses.

There is no way to attach a current sensing clamp here and I would advise against opening up the panel to find the incoming live feed. You would need to isolate the supply into the building and there is no facility for householders to do this - I believe you are expected to contact the electricity supply company if you need to isolate anything before the main switch on the consumer unit.

The current-sense clamps supplied with energy monitors are intended to be used in the exterior meter box.


How to connecting addition frame to existing rim joist

You'll need to use hangers regardless. Face-nailing (as I assume you're implying by your mention of a "standard frame") isn't adequate to carry joists. They need actual bearing.

An alternative could be a new ledger set below the existing rim joist, itself mounted with structural steel ledger hangers, on which the joists rest. I suspect that your inspector would still require a more substantial wall connection for each joist, though.


My bathroom fan brings air into the bathroom; should it?

From what you describe it seems unlikely that the vent fan is actually installed to blow backwards. So it would be much more likely that the trouble you are encountering could be one of:

The back draft flapper may be stuck in a shut position. This is a device to close off the vent for air flow trying to come in from the vent pipe. Sometimes they are built right into fan housing where the vent pipe attaches. Other times the flapper will be part of the roof or wall vent where the vent pipe exhausts to the outside. In some cases there could be flappers in both locations.
The vent pipe from the from the fan to the outside may be filled up with dust, dirt or other debris. This could be from years of accumulation or debris blown in or carried in from the outside vent opening.
The vent pipe may be damaged, kinked or flattened. This could happen when workers were careless or for other various reasons due to remolding, adding insulation or re-roofing.

In all three instances there can be blockage of the airflow that the fan is trying to expel from the room. For a significant enough blockage some of the air flow will try to return back into the room around the periphery of the fan blades. This is likely what you are noticing when you held the paper up to the vent grille. It is often the case that a fan trying to blow into a blockage will generate a lot more noise than one that has a free flowing path for the air that the fan is moving.

The fix is going to require careful inspection of the whole vent system from the fan housing all the way through the vent pipe and out to the place where the pipe terminates the roof or wall of the building.


Should I apply termite preventative products to pressure treated wood?

It's beneficial. Here in Texas, where it is humid and wet and we also have a lot of ground-based termites, I use TimBor for posts and rot sills in fences.

The problem is, you want to have put that treatment on the wood before it goes in the concrete. At this point, your best method of preventing termites from getting into the structural portions of your fence are to keep dirt, grass, and yard debris away from the fence, and make sure that the concrete 'caps' stay above the level of dirt and grass so that there isn't organic material or termite "straws" along the concrete leading to the posts.


Must I use both cables running to my bathroom fan?

Chances are one cable is the source, and the other is a switch loop. You'd need to safely test to be sure, though. If that's the case, here's what it should look like:

If you don't have a grounding conductor (bare wire) in your cable, ignore the ground wire in your fan kit. There's not much you can do about it without running new wire. It's probably a low-risk issue anyway.

Sorry your question slipped through the cracks. I hope you got it resolved.


The furnace needs combustion air to allow the fuel in the furnace and water heater to burn efficiently. Too little supply air can produce a lot of adverse effects.


Zoned oil furnace and AC thermostat question

You should check the wiring in the furnace. There are no standards for thermostat wire colors, so you can't always trust the color of the wires.  Seeing how the wires connect to the furnace, is a sure fire way to figure out what's what.

The O (cool mode) and B (heat mode) terminals are usually used for a reversing valve, in heat pump systems.  I'm not familiar with oil systems, so I can't say for sure what they would be used for.

Some thermostats have separate O and B terminals, like this.

Others have an O/B terminal, and use a jumper to select which should be used.


How do I temporarily protect a flat roof until a permanent fix can be made?

You'll need some plastic sheeting (reinforced, ideally, as in a medium-weight tarp or mesh-embedded poly), and you'll need some lumber. 1x4s and 2x4s in eight- to twelve-foot lengths would be good. Even better if they roughly match the width of your sheeting roll or tarp.

Roll out a length of sheeting that's as long as the slope of your roof plus 6 feet.

At one end, roll a board into the sheeting for three wraps. Keep it neat and tight.

Lay another board over the wraps and screw it to the wrapped board, sandwiching the sheeting.

Do the same at the other end. The result should be leave you with the roof dimension plus about 16" between the wrapped boards.

Drape this assembly over the roof, with the lumber hanging off the high and low edges of the roof. It should be completely flat so as to not catch water anywhere. The dropped ends shouldn't be so long as to sway in the wind and cause damage or lift. Shorten the assembly if needed.

If needed, repeat this process and install additional runs with a 2-3 foot lap on the side.

Lay lumber down the edges of the runs, stapling from below to keep it from sliding off the roof. It's critical to keep the wind from lifting the edges. If that happens the whole thing becomes a parachute.
         <-- slope direction -->
      ___________________________________________ <---- lumber on edges
   __|___________________________________________|__    (stapled to sheet)
 _|  ---------------------------------------------  |_
| | |                       ^-- roof              | | |
|_| |<-- fascia or wall                           | |_| <-- wrapped lumber


Should I turn off heat in my home when I am finishing my basement?

My cousin is an HVAC contractor and always recommends that people NOT have their HVAC running while drywall is going up in order to prevent all the sanding dust from clogging up the furnace/duct work. He even offers to temporarily install an old system that he's got if it's necessary to provide heat to the structure.
It will take heat for interior coats (drywall mud, paint, caulk, etc) to dry/cure properly, so you'll need to provide some sort of heat. Also, if you're living in the house, you will need some sort of heat. This can be temporary electric or propane heat if necessary. Be exceedingly cautious if using any sort of temporary gas heat to ensure adequate ventilation so you don't kill yourself (some consider this worse than getting sick), and that you don't burn down the house (remember, the propane is burning to provide heat).
You may consider temporarily blocking off all return air ducts coming from the areas being refinished in order to help keep the dust from being sucked into your heating system. You may also want to invest in higher quality HEPA rated filters for your furnace, at least while you're doing the renovation work, and change them more frequently knowing that no matter how well you seal off the work area, some dust will leak through into the rest of the house.


Can a dimmer switch be used in this circuit?

Achievement Unlocked: Wire a box with 6 different wire functions without using any phase tape

Sorry, no points for that "achievement", just a lot of brain pain.  Let's try this.

Ah, suddenly I can hear myself think
Most of this looks pretty straight forward.  The top /3 cable is the supply side of a 3-way circuit.  The bottom /3 cable supplies light and fan in the usual manner.
But something rather squirreley is going on with cables 2 and 3 here.   You've labeled cable #3 as "Line" but then, feeding all the switches off the black wire of cable 2 doesn't make any sense.
So this raises more questions than answers.
What might make more sense is if cable 2 was actually line, and comprised a multi-wire branch circuit, with one pole serving all loads here, and the other pole heading off to parts unknown in cable 3.  Does the breaker for this circuit have 2 handles and the handles are tied?  (on Square D "QO" this might look like a double-wide breaker with a single handle).


Can I replace the engineer's I-Beam recommendation with a different one?

I think I figured it out.  I was thrown off by the Elastic Section Modulus.

Anyway, the deflection is calculated using the following parameters:

W = load

L = length

E = Young's Modulus

I = moment of inertia

And the equation for max deflection is:

I'm trying to find a beam with the same maxdef or smaller.  I can ignore W and L because they are the same regardless of I-beam.  Young's Modulus E is a property of the steel used, so it is also the same regardless of I-beam and can be ignored (this is what I misunderstood).  This means, the only variable I have to worry about is I.  I can see in the equation that I is part of the denominator, so if I increases, deflection decreases.  So I just need a W6 beam with a larger I than what the W8x15 beam has.

Final answer:  The only W6 beam with a greater I than the W8x15 beam is the W6x25,


Is a slightly-deformed clay pipe a concern?

I suspect that's just an artifact of looking at two round pipes joined. The city sewer is not square, so the house pipe is longer on the bottom and the top than it is in the middle, to fit to the hole in the city line. It's probably also not at a 90 degree angle, so there may be some left/right difference as well.

Probably the most common thing you can quickly look at (from the outside) to get an idea is the joints on a bicycle frame.

It's called a "fishmouth" becasue the prepared end of the pipe looks a bit like one. You are looking at that from inside. Remarkably clean line, by the way.


Adding a smart switch to a box originally containing two single-pole switches

Legal colors in conduit wiring:
ALWAYS-HOT: black, brown, red, orange, yellow, pink, blue, or purple
SWITCHED-HOT: black, brown, red, orange, yellow, pink, blue, or purple
There's a convention of black for always and red for switched, but that's purely optional.
Now, these 2 switches have independent control, right? Neither switch is dependent on the other to be on, right?   So... that tells us that whichever wires go to BOTH switches must therefore be always-hot.  Therefore, red is always-hot.
Black is on the other switch terminal, so it must be switched-hot.
On the other switch, I see 2 yellow wires on the same terminal.  One uses the screw and the other uses the backstab.  Sloppy using the backstab but somebody really, really wanted to use the 50 cent switches instead of the $3.00 ones.  Anyway, those must be switched-hot, even though there are two of them.
Neutral, you've met. Make sure those neutrals are part of the same cable or conduit as the hots you are intending to switch, as that's a Code requirement. But they are, here.
I have no idea why there are 2 wires going to the switched-hot. Normally that indicates more than one lamp.  However that's how it was done, so that's how it should continue.  They'll be pigtailed to the new switch unless it has provision for 2 wires (most better switches do).
As for grounds... this hole is already tapped for a machine screw (bolt) of size  #10-32.  Readily available in North America, they even sell green ones just for ground screws - but any will do.


Should a 3'-4' retaining wall have interlocking blocks?

without a lip you'd want to use concrete adhesive on each row.

check your local code regulations. Typically a wall of a certain height has to be run through an engineer first. In my area I believe the height was 3'. Anything higher I'd have to hire an engineer.

In our case, we had a large amount of earth to retain, but decided it was best to use a tiered approach building two 3' walls with a 8' set back between each.

In either case, go with the largest blocks you can use. The larger the block, the heavier the block, the sturdier the wall, and the better it will hold back whatever is behind it.


Will a fan motor run in reverse if the receptacles polarity is reversed?

Just crappy fan design and misleading ratings (450-920 cfm with no duct at all, and terrible fall off with any normal resistance - or else it's an outright lie.) What is your actual duct arrangement (size, length, number of turns?)

If the fan was running in reverse, the tissue would be blown away, not sucked up from any distance. A/C motors run on current that reverses polarity many times per second, and their direction of operation is not affected by that.

Either return it, or scrap the fan and replace with a quality duct fan designed for range hood service (grease, moisture, heat) - might as well go for quiet as well while you are investing in quality.


Roofing material for flat slope western pacific northwest

Your shingle manufacturer (CertainTeed) specifically states that your roofing material should not be used for 2:12 pitch (which, BTW, is not flat as you state in your question). However, the instructions also seem to contradict that later.

  Limitations: Use on roofs with slopes greater than 2" per foot. Low-slope applications (2" to 4" per foot)
  require additional underlayment. In areas where icing along eaves can cause the back-up of water, apply
  CertainTeed WinterGuard™ Waterproofing Shingle Underlayment, or its equivalent, according to
  application instructions provided with the product and on the shingle package.

Bold emphasis mine.

Now, it is listed for slopes greater than 2:12 but with specific instructions for underlayment on "low-slope" applications.

I would pay a contractor (not the one that did the warranty repair) to ascertain the exact slope and for them to put it in writing; tell the contractor why.

If it is:

not greater than 2:12 you should demand a complete reroof by sending the home manufacturer a certified letter accompanied by the contractor's statement. If the builder does not respond have a lawyer send them a letter. If they still do not respond take legal action.
greater than 2:12, have the contractor ascertain whether or not the proper underlayment methods were used. If not, see above.

There is also the question/problem of ridge vent removal. The manufacturer specifies the use of ridge vent combined with soffit venting; however, if the vent configuration meets normal standards for your area and roof size maybe that's not a deal-breaker.


Pine vs Cedar for patio furniture on screen porch

While cedar is certainly more rot-resistant, pine should be fine.

Should not even need to be pressure treated, since the area is mostly dry.


How to prevent solidification of mastic in nozzles

I push a nail or screw into the nozzle, has to fit tightly though.
Usually work for a week or more, but after that I have to dig the nozzle out or fit a new nozzle to continue using the cartridge.
It will never keep forever, had some old cartridges that had never been used or opened and they had just gone solid so there is a shelf life...


Are there any downsides to floating click lock floors versus traditional nail down floors when both are full wood?

If both are installed correctly then there isn't a ton of difference.

But the small difference - in that the floating can slightly buckle in some areas due to humidity and temp - makes nailing down the choice.  Really floating should be used if installing on slab, if you used a ton of floor leveler, or mixed surfaces.  A far as the install nailing down requires a gun but it is actually easier then glueing everything together.


Type of sealant for nails under asphalt shingles

I have used zinc make sure the strip extends beyond the shingles , we started using wide zinc strips at 2 levels after moving to Oregon and noticing no moss or fungus below the metal roof vents. I like black jack it is a good sealant and if putting a roof I accidentally have a shiner a dab of blackjack on top will seal that exposed nail head. Make sure to slip the zinc under on a warm day so you don’t break the shingles.


Is it possible to over tighten adapters, valves, etc, causing leaks?

Yes you can definitely over tighten threaded connections.  The typical rule of thumb is to hand tighten, then tighten a quarter-turn with a wrench. If you still have leaks, repeat the quarter turn until the leak stops.

Also make sure that on threaded connections that you use Teflon tape or pipe dope. Do not use this on compression fittings.


Bath tub spout still drips a little after replacing, is this normal?

So I bought the replacing cartridge in my comment, and followed the instruction  here. Super easy and no need trick or anything. The whole old cartridge came out easily, unlike other videos.


Exhaust fan venting through soffit where attic has no vent

Avoiding penetrating the roof with a bath fan vent is the wrong disposition.  Given current materials and techniques, a weather tight seal can be expected every time.  And the trade-off is clearly on that side. Their just too many risks when dumping the vent fan anyplace but through the roof. Keep the run as short as possible and as vertical as possible.  Happy venting.


Can electrical cables in wall cause the wallpaint to change color?

Most probably from temperature. Electromagnetic fields usually do not change plaster or color in that way.

If your installation is old and plastered in, and undersized, the wires would beat up and the wall material would e.g. loose some Cristal water over time and thus change color.

If you can verify your hypothesis with some metal or wire detector. If you think it is best, try to find the consumers for the wires and turn them on. After some time you should be able to notice a difference. The ideal way would be a thermal camera, but they are quite expensive and you probably cannot easily get one.

If it is temperature induced, you should consider replacing them with an up to date Installation and make sure you are not overloading them.


How do I adjust the gap on interior French doors?

Did you check the frame again after hanging the doors?  Could be that the frame wasn't securely attached to the studs and the weight of the doors is causing the frame to pull out slightly.

Also, maybe too late for this now, but you mentioned that the old frame was about an inch wider than the new one.  That seems a bit strange.  Is that the rough in dimensions, or the finished frame dimensions?  Usually the rough in is a couple inches or so wider than the actual door frame dimensions to give you some room to plumb things up with shims.

So if you had a 48" door set, the rough in width would be 50" - 48 for the door, 1 more for the frame, and 1 more for shimming.


Furnace turns off power to the thermostat

Limits are only designed to open when there's a problem, so the first step here is to find out what the problem is and fix it.

The most common cause for a high limit to continually trip, is a dirty or improperly installed return air filter. Make sure you change the filter regularly, and that you're using one with a similar density to the one recommended by the manufacturer's documentation.

Restricted return and supply ducts can also reduce air flow through the system, which can lead to the furnace overheating. Make sure all return air vents are clean an unobstructed by furniture and other obstructions.  Also make sure that all supply registers are open, and unobstructed.

Check the blower compartment for dust/dirt/debris.  It's not common for the blower to get dirty, but it does happen from time to time. This is especially common, when a furnace is run without a filter, or with an improperly fitted filter.

A dirty blocked up evaporator coil, could also cause restrictions. If the unit has an evaporator coil fitted, you'll want to inspect it to insure it's not dirty.

If there's still trouble, you can check the blower motor and capacitor. Though this is only recommended if you have the proper tools and knowledge to do it. Otherwise you'll want to get an HVAC technician to handle it.

Unless you've recently changed the blower, there's not likely any problem with the way it's installed.

With all that being said.  Some furnaces are actually designed to remove power from the thermostat, in the case that a limit opens.  Obviously this design predates fancy WiFi thermostats, which require constant power to operate.  Back in the olden days, when a thermostat simply acted as a temperature switch, interrupting the signal to the thermostat was an effective solution.

Based on the schematic, it looks like the unit is controlled by the integrated furnace control module (IFC). It looks like the IFC has a separate limit circuit that it monitors, so I'm not sure that it would cut power to the thermostat if there was a problem.  In any case, the thermostat should not be damaged by losing power. I suspect there's more to this, and I haven't been able to find any service bulletins that describe this behavior.

I'd likely start by contacting the manufacturer directly. If that doesn't provide any clues, I'd contact a different local HVAC company to come have a look.  If there's an installers sticker on the unit (or you know who installed it), and the installation company is different than the company you've been dealing with. I'd contact the company that installed the unit, as they should be quite familiar with the equipment.

Unfortunately it's difficult to troubleshoot these types of problems through the internet, especially when I'm not familiar with the equipment.


What would you do to quickly troubleshoot a j-type fixture that burns out bulbs every few days?

First ever... I don't know.
I had two different lamps fail bulbs after 3-4 days.   Not 1 day or 4-5 hours buy 3-4 days.   I think the lamps are fine.   I never put my fingers or anything else on any contacts.   I never put my fingers on the end of the bulbs.
So....

crappy bulbs... guessing so
tried several variations of LEDs and finally hit one that worked well plus didn't look "white".

So... I should have switched to LEDs sooner.   I have no idea why my bulbs burnt out so quick.   I rather have the halogen but the LEDs I have are in the same range has them and it is "good enough".    The tenants are happy, dimmers working, bulbs lasting.


Residentail Tankless Water Heater Electrical Concerns

Handle-ties have two reasons:

Joint trip.  This is relevant if a safety problem that causes one trip, would also require the other side be tripped. It's not applicable to multi-wire branch circuits (MWBC), for instance. In this case it is not applicable to dual 240V heater elements as that machine is designed.
Common maintenance shut-off.  Appropriate when we want to design the system so a worker de-energizing equipment is forced to turn it all off.  This is required for MWBCs, for instance.  It's not really relevant here, since it's readily obvious to any competent person that the heater is powered by 2-3 circuits, so he's going to make sure he shuts them all off.

In this case, neither instance applies, so handle ties between the 2-pole breakers are not warranted.  Beware: the tripping half-breaker may not have the physical muscle to trip three additional half-breakers.  So you don't do something like that without affirming the device is listed to do exactly that.  Otherwise you violate the rule on using items only as listed (tested).

Using both grounds is a matter of why not, since it's already in the 8/2 cable.  If it was connected via plastic conduit, that wouldn't apply.

In steel conduit, the conduit is the ground and no further grounds are required; you can run a ground of any size if you're really into belt-and-suspenders.  I'm sorry, I made that sound weird.  I would do that.


Is exterior paint more protective than stain for protecting a shed from rain/elements?

All wood coatings are essentially decorations. The only thing that keeps wood from rotting outside is proper drainage of it and airflow around it. Wood can get wet every time it rains and snows as long as it is permitted to shed water effectively and dry out quickly. When it stays wet even through days of sunshine and wind is when wood will begin to foster fungus and rot. The vegetable and fungal organisms that attack wood require constant moisture for survival. So design your wood elements exposed to the weather judiciously, and choose a finish for its aesthetic merits and maintenance requirements.

An oil based stain requires minimal prep work, doesn't peel and flake as it ages but simply fades, and reapplication down the road requires little to no prep work again, though it may require more frequent reapplication than paint to remain looking brilliant. Paint is a more exciting and transformative finish, but requires more prep work, and reapplication down the road may require some labor intensive scraping and sanding. If you do decide to use paint, then stick with a high quality exterior latex, and be sure to use a high quality latex primer first (you get exactly what you pay for with paint). Stay away from oil paints. Latex paints are much more flexible than oil paints and will hold longer looking good.


Why is the white wire hot in an bath exhaust fan switch circuit?

In the past the white wire in a NM cable was used as either a hot or a switched hot in what is called a "switch loop". This is no longer done, but, e.g., my 1970 house is wired that way.
Consider the case of a wall switch controlled ceiling fixture where the line power is in the ceiling box, i.e., black hot and white neutral (plus bare gnd) are in the ceiling box. The white neutral would be connected directly to the  neutral contact of the fixture and the hot would connect to one wire of a /2 + gnd cable going to the switch box.
The other wire in this cable would be the switched hot going back to the ceiling box and connected to the hot contact of the fixture. These /2 cables only came with white and black wires so the white had to be used either for the line hot or for the switched hot.
In this older arrangement there would be no neutral in the switch loop/switch box. At that time there was no need for a neutral in the switch box because the switches of that time did not consume power. New programmable switches do consume power and they require a neutral in the switch box to complete the circuit to allow current to flow back to the panel for their own internal operation.
Nowadays a /3 cable is used for this purpose with the white being used to carry neutral to the switch box and black and red used for hot and switched hot.


Filling an outdoor drain with concrete to reduce standing water

Sumps typically have standing water, as Jasen mentions, part of the reason of having them is a sediment trap to prevent debris from going into the storm drain.  All that "compost" didn't end up in the storm drain.  You also likely don't want that compost entering your pipe and possibly getting a clog.  A deeper sump pit means you have to clean it out less often.

Is there something specific you worry about?


How do I identify rough-in plumbing pipes?

Closet to the corner against wall is for a shower or bath drain. The next is toilet drain.  The next is where you attach the sink drain.

The fourth (closest to camera) is the main stack for the house, with the main line clean out at the bottom.


Are there any tips to prevent or reduce dust when working with drywall?

Here's one small tip: use a sticky note to catch dust from drilling- (courtesy of: http://rebrn.com/re/lpt-use-a-post-it-note-to-catch-dust-when-drilling-2615252/)

Another tip (for cutting into the ceiling) might be to use a piece of paper or a styrofoam cup to create a cone- taped around a drill or sawzall- (How to avoid dust when drilling in the ceiling)
Of course attaching a vacuum hose to the tool might work, or it might be so cumbersome that it's not really worth the struggle. Many sanders have a vacuum attachment built in.
It has been suggested in a few places that a bit of shaving cream or toothpaste can be applied at or near the area to collect dust.
Making cuts with a razor or box cutter is less dusty than a key-hole saw or a sawzall.
Obviously, a drop cloth will be necessary, especially for sanding.
Open two or more windows (so that air can flow through the house) and set a box fan in the window closest to the area where dust will be generated, blowing outward.
Many vacuums will not have fine enough filters to capture all of the dust. So a dust collector might be handy to use in conjunction with a vacuum.

Wetsanding is a technique where you use a damp sponge or damp towel to sand patches.
And there are low dust drywall compounds (muds).


Should I use Concrete dissolver or Muratic acid to remove splatter?

I used muriatic acid to clean boats and to clear urinal drains.  I have seen it used to clean a cement mixer on youtube.  It is very strong stuff.  You just spray it on for a few minutes and then scrub with a brush or sponge.  Wear gloves and eye protection.  There are a few videos on youtube.


Can I disable an old security system by disconnecting the transformer?

The wire from the transformer goes into the wall and right back into your alarm panel with the rest of the wires to energize it. Unscrew the wires from the transformer and just tuck them into the wall by the outlet in case you ever want to use the panel again. Tuck the transformer into the alarm box and shut it. There doesn't appear to be any backup batteries but if there are, disconnect them too.


Help identify wall & how to hang things on it

Your wall looks like plaster.  It is most likely laid over wood lath, metal mesh or backing board.
Sometimes you can bang very thin sharp nails into plaster successfully.  But yours seems to be more brittle by your description.
Try drilling through the plaster with a small sharp drill bit in a few places.    Feel when the plaster transitions to something else.  Then clean the drill bit and keep drilling, looking at the shavings to determine what your backing is.  If it's wood lath you may happen to drill between laths, that's why I say "in a few places".  You could also drill a half-inch hole and buy a cheap endoscope to see definitively what's behind the wall.    (Edit: Some say you should use a masonry bit.  I get better results with a sharp wood bit but you should experiment to find what's best on your walls.   And for the initial experimentation I describe above, the ideal thing is a hand drill.   And there is an additional possibility I should describe: the plaster may be over brick in some places, eg over a chimney.  In that case you should use appropriate methods for brick.)
If it's metal or backing board you can use plastic anchors for plaster (don't use drywall anchors) or toggles depending on what you're hanging.  If it's wood lath my preferred technique is to drill just up to the wood, then drill a small pilot hole through the lath, put a shortened plastic anchor into the hole (it will only go up to the lath) and then use a 2-1/2" screw.  The anchor will do some of the work and the lath will help a great deal.  The combination is quite strong.
I also second the advice in the other answer about using the picture rail as intended.   If your picture rail is an ACTUAL picture rail (it's hard to tell from the photo) it will have a rounded top designed for special picture rail hooks.  Buy them.  Then don't need ANY tools or fasteners at all!


How do I replace or repair a motion sensor PIR lens?

The item you are looking for is a PIR lens.  These are typically sold in bulk, but now that you know the name of it, you should be able to google for one to purchase.

An example one is here


Loosen the lower element on a electric water heater

I believe the tool you are using is a plumbers socket. It is usually sized at 1 1/8th inch. The reason the heating element isn't removing easily is probably due to hard water build up on its threads. What I do when I encounter a stubborn heating element is to apply extra leverage to the socket. If you can supplement a cheater bar with the socket handle the element should unscrew with no effort. A 1/2 inch diameter steel pipe fitted over the handle will work. Or any object that will extend the socket handle several inches will also suffice.


Adding sidelights to a front entrance that does not have them

A door is held up by hinges in the jamb (the broad boards surrounding the door, perpendicular to the surface of the wall). The jamb is thin material, usually a little over 1/2 inch thick, but it is firmly nailed to the jack stud, which gives it rigidity, as does any casing added between the jamb and the wall. The header also sits on the jack stud.

While you might theoretically be able to move the king studs to the outside of the sidelights, you cannot move the jack studs outward. This would render the jamb the total support of the door (unacceptable) and would extend the span of the header (undesirable, often requiring a deeper header).

Also the king studs, which tie the king/jamb/door structure into the bottom and top plates would be further apart, reducing the rigidity of the structure nearest the door, where most of any flex occurs. Finally, any molding joining the jamb to the sidelights would likely be much narrower than traditional casing, again reducing rigidity.

Unless there is a compelling reason to narrow the vertical spacing between the door and sidelight, go with full stud/sidelight/king/jack/door ...

Even if there were a compelling reason, engineers and inspectors might disagree.

An exception might be for a sidelight/door/sidelight structure designed as a unit.


Cast pipe and fittings do rust. And when it rusts on a threaded fitting that s not opened for a long while it is basically frozen.
Tapping GENTLY around and on the plug while wrenching it open may work.
Sometimes wrenching it tight and than loose free's the plug.
Heating the hub (outside section where the plug screws into) may help. Don't strike the cast when heating it.
If you find a rubber (hub-less) connector that fits over the plug you can drill, saw, cut the plug out install the new connector and cap.


Driveway crack repair work failed over the winter, how can I make it last?

Option A: keep doing what you did, and expect it to fail every
winter; be pleasantly surprised if it does not some years.
Option B: tear up the driveway and put a proper base under it. The
lack of a proper base is almost certainly why it self-destructs in
winter.

If you can stand the annual work, Option A can be done for MANY years before you begin to touch the price of Option B.

"A proper base" will depend in part on the underlying soil (a good deal of which may need to be removed and replaced with compacted rock and gravel) but is generally a firm, well drained foundation.

If you're really independent-minded there is also Option C: tear up the surface and change to gravel/rocks rather than a hard-surface driveway - takes some annual raking, but immune to cracks for the most part.

Edit, Add:
Depending both on the existing grade and soil type, you might get some benefit from digging a French drain (drain pipe under rocks) down both sides of the driveway to help keep water from going under it sideways, and help remove any water that does get into it, at less cost than the full dig up and replace the whole surface. If you have porous soils (sandy, gravelly) this will help a lot, if you have clay it will be of more limited benefit.


My apartment still smells like polyurethane after over a month! I have a toddler with respiratory issues, please help

From what you've told us, it sounds like you are trying a number of good ideas to help mitigate the smell and lingering off-gassing but maybe not optimally.

I actually would advise against using bowls of water or vinegar and
adding unnecessary moisture to the air.
You actually want to remove moisture from the air (air conditioners //air dehumidifiers do this), however, if you are in
the colder climates like it sounds like you are, this is not very
pratical and  in the winter months you actually want some humidity
in the air.
You are using space heaters to generate heat, but the windows are open - mother nature is going to win this fight

You actually want to put the space heaters away, in fact, many apartments forbid their use. As long as they provide functioning heat, they can prohibit their use. If it isn't prohibited then use it, but realize they are a safety hazard in more than one way, especially if your fumes are as potent as you suggest.

Just close the windows, get the heat cranked up a little higher, and get a fan to circulate the air. Put water sources away, dry the sink, etc. Don't add unnecessary water to the air. Locate the strongest source of the odor and get the fan circulating air in that room.

Vacate the premises for a few hours, then when you get home, go ahead open two windows, preferrably opposite sides of the space, and put the fan blowing the air directly out for 10-15 minutes. Close the windows, repeat.

I'm not suggesting you do this as an option, but I want you to understand an example of how long a smell can last despite the best of intentions & I only came to this after a few years of frustration:

Need tips, approach, or method(s) to eliminate smell/odor in a closet short of a tear down?

You indicate that you know you can take legal action, but honestly, I'm not so sure that is true. Every area has laws and regulations to follow, but (even if this was subsidized housing), it doesn't sound like the landlord failed to provide livable living space.

If the smell is indeed paint/poly/etc., the instructions&use of most of these products is typically in the span of 1-2 days, so weeks later, its supposed to be safe even if stinky. You can seek out staying at a friends or families, but I wouldn't expect any compensation or recourse from the landlord unless they did something wrong, and its not advisable to throw accusations unless you have a basis.

Keep doing what you are doing, and see if you can pinpoint the issue. Warm air & ventilation will help. If you can locate the source and it isn't paint/poly, then discuss with the landlord. If they are renovating other nearby apartments then request them to wait holdoff spring to use chemicals if at all possible.


Ensure that the sprinkler wire you select is rated for UV exposure and a suitable temperature range for your region. Buried wire is generally protected from these elements by virtue of being buried.

You may also consider placing a UV rated conduit the protect the wire above ground.

Either way, sprinkler system wiring is considered low voltage and there are very few codes governing the installation. Being above or below ground shouldn't be a safety concern.


What is the best strategy for this layout if I want/need to remove copper plumbing and move to PEX? (two bathrooms connected by the same supply pipes)

That kind of corrosion is usually attributed to the failure to remove excess soldering flux, and it does not indicate the pipes are corroding through. Wiping all those areas with a wet rough rag would probably remove the deposits. Then examine the joints for pitting and for pinhole leaks. At this point replacing all this plumbing would be premature.
Copper water piping can corrode through. We had multiple pinhole leaks in the 6 ft vertical run carrying hot water from the tank down to the slab. But your pipes do not appear to be corroding through. The corrosion is probably superficial and stopped when all the excess flux was consumed. The excess flux should have been wiped off by the plumber who sweated the joints,  but often this is not done.


First off. With a 20 ampere breaker, you must use at least 12 AWG copper conductors. The 14 AWG you used is to small, and should be replaced.

Second. By connecting the wires to a double pole breaker, you've indeed created a 240 volt circuit.  If that was your intention, you should have installed a NEMA 6-20 receptacle. This would have prevented you from plugging 120 volt loads into the receptacle, as the prongs would not have fit. If this was not your intention, you should rewire the circuit using a single pole breaker.

Third. You should not have cut the grounding conductor short. You should have connected it to the grounding screw on the receptacle, and to the box if it is metal.

Lastly. It sounds like you don't know much about electrical work, and should likely contact a local licensed Electrician.


I need to remove a 45 yo cast iron tub for a remodeling job

  and don't want to damage the surrounding walls etc too much.

Pick one of those two, or realize that "too much" has to have quite a high threshold in this case. They don't come out easily, and they were put in before tile, etc was put on, and the  plumbing you need to disconnect may not have been provided with any access other than "bash the wall open when you need to get at it." If you are not comfortable with seeing the walls of the alcove ripped back to studs, you may not be ready to remove the tub. You can't really properly replace it without going there, anyway.


MO 4 4post breaker in a home running both 110 and 220 off same breaker

It's called Grandfathered

If you build something, and it's up to code at the time, and they update Code, you usually don't need to tear out the work and retrofit.

There are exceptions, e.g. for earthquake codes for high-value/traffic buildings, or ADA when you're doing a major renovation anyway.)  Wiring isn't one of them.

It's really about quality of work

If the original system was properly wired, it is a great deal safer than newer work that is wired wrong.

So you need to go through the system, with an eye for how it should have been built at the time.  This isn't far off of today, except for the addition of grounds.

You can retrofit additional safety

In 2014 (really!) they amended Code to allow you to retrofit grounds at will. The ground path does not need to follow the other wires, it just needs to be large enough for the load.

If you want to protect against failing electrical wires sparking and arcing and starting fires, you can fit arc-fault circuit interruptor (AFCI) circuit breakers.

If you want to protect house users from electrocution (e.g. hair dryer dropped in bathtub), you can install ground-fault circuit interruptor (GFCI) devices.  These are commonly available as

a circuit breaker
a "blank-face" device you put inline in the wiring
a "live-face" device, same as a blank-face except they give you a couple of convenience outlets

They make dual-mode AFCI and GFCI breakers.  It's cheaper to use an AFCI breaker and a GFCI blank-face or live-face though.

The four sub-panels are very good news.  That means if a subpanel is dangerous (FPE), obsolete (Pushmatic), cheap (Homeline), weird (Q-line), or just expensive to get GFCI/AFCI breakers for (QO/CH) -- you can swap the subpanel easily enough, without any serious danger.


Does anyone know if concrete blocks with half-moon tops are made?

They make them. Not concrete blocks per se but other precast concrete units. You'll need to find out if you're local suppliers carry them or you have a precast stone manufacturer near you.

The family of products you're talking about, which includes not only the half round but other shapes, are called concrete coping stones. That should help you ask around to see if you can get them.


How can I extend an electric wire without a large cross-section connector?

Use a crimp joint with heatshrink
Join the wires with a crimp. This is a permanent means of connecting wires that, done properly, will never come loose. It involves crushing another piece of metal into the wire with a special tool.
It is, however, critical that you use the correct size crimp for your cable, and the correct tool. Test the crimp by trying to pull it apart - they should hold at least 5-10kg force.
Insulate with heat shrink tubing. This is a special type of tubing that can be slid over the cable then heated, causing it to shrink radially and seal onto the wires/cables. Ideally you would use one sleeve over each individual crimp/conductor, then another larger diameter layer over the sheath of the whole cable (assuming you are joining sheathed cable).
Apply heat using a hot air gun or blow torch - avoid applying too much heat.
The shrinking effect prevents the sleeve from moving, and reduces any gaps. Glue lined heat shrink is available if the joint needs to be watertight.

Image courtesy Smial of Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 2.0 DE.


Mounting a projector underneath a soffit containing ductwork

There should be some sort of framing around the ductwork although I would bet it's just a 1x2 board and not suitable for lag bolts.
I would suggest to do the shelf idea or mount it from the ceiling.


Yes you can.  I have done a few drains on second floor laundry areas.  This is perfectly acceptable.

First you don't really pick where the drain goes exactly gravity does.  You need to figure out in what direction water will go in that room from the washer - you need to put it on the low point.  Then you need to chisel out slight the area around it - maybe going out a foot or two and down at least 1/16th of an inch, better if 1/8th.

Also if you are really worried about what is under the room you might want to redgard the floor or some other sort of waterproofing.


Based on other Googling, I found I had two choices: big holes through the stucco, plugged with silicone caulk and screw anchors (if I needed to hang something heavy, I definitely would go that route) or Loctite Stik'n'Seal Outdoor Adhesive.

So I Stuck'n'Sealed 'em.  Note to anyone who goes this route: it seems to take FOREVER for the glue to set!  If I had this to do again I would definitely invent some sort of rig to clamp them to the wall while the glue sets.  Also, one of the digits ended up in a very uneven section of stucco; the lower two-thirds are flat against the wall, while the top is about 1/8th" proud.  I'll definitely need to go back to that with sealer...

However, for the time being... so far so good.  If anyone else has a similar problem, this is what I'd recommend.


Cold upper interior and exterior walls, moisture forms when showering

Sounds like you need a good exhaust fan to keep the moisture down.

Good luck!


Can I change a switch within a circuit from powering multiple lights to a single light?

First thing you'll have to do is determine where the wire from the switch is going. I'm guessing that all those lights,fan, and receptacle are just daisy-chained with the switch interrupting the neutral inside a fixture box or separate junction box.  (Why, why, why?)  If you make the existing switch control only the ceiling fan, you'll of course, need to decide where you want to add a switch or switches to control the others.  Additional wiring may involve crawling in the attic if there is one, drilling top plates, and dropping wire to new switch locations.  That's the best I can offer given the vagueness of the problem as described.  I will add that, if necessary, you could probably rent a toner and probe to trace wiring (with circuit breaker turned off).  Or, more practical, find the suspected other end of the switch wire, disconnect it, and gently wire nut the pair together and then check with a multimeter for continuity at the other end to confirm that's your wire. HTH


The code requires certain minimum and maximum dimensions for spiral stairs.

The Code defines the “walk line” as a distance 12” from the narrowest portion of the stair AND the tread must be a minimum of  7 1/2” wide. (See ICC R311.7.9.1)

The riser shall be uniform in height and a maximum of 9 1/2”.

The width of the stair shall be a minimum of 26” wide below the handrails. That is to say, the handrails cannot protrude into the 26”, but you can make the stairs wider and have the handrails protrude into that space. (See ICC R311.7.9)

Also, there shall be a minimum of 6’-6” headroom.

Handrails shall be not less than 30” above the nosing of the tread and not more than 38”. (See ICC R311.7.7.1)


I just purchased a condo on the beach, which was built in 1978. Trying to drill through the concrete but to no avail. Please help!

You should consider using a concrete nail gun which uses 22 cal charges to drive a nail into concrete. These tools are sold at all of the major hardware box stores.


Well, as long as it does not go into the U-bend where the water trap is (prevents smalls coming up) then it will be fine.
I always make sure it goes in at least 6" as I have seen the force when it starts pumping to push the hose out - leading to some clearing up, one way to get a clean floor though :)


Does a long deck beam need a post at staggered joints?

How are you joining these 2x12's?

Who has done the load and deflection calculations to ensure that a 3.5" x 11.5" x 40' wood beam can handle the load you want to put on it?

What kind of load are you expecting the finished deck to hold?

Is this thing up in the air, or close to the ground?

You've considered that your finished beam is going to weigh somewhere around 550 to 600 pounds all by itself, right?  ;-)

If your beam is nailed or screwed together

If you're making your composite beam by nailing or screwing the 2 x 12's together, I would absolutely expect you to need a post under each staggered joint. I probably wouldn't want to stand under it otherwise, unless you used so many nails or screws that it looks like rows of rivets. Because a big chunk of the load will be hanging (a shearing force) on the nails or screws, and on the small section of the 2 x 12's that the nails or screws are in contact with, rather than the load being born fully along the length of the beam.

No engineering calcs or diagrams here; but in an unbroken beam most of the load is actually handled along the top and bottom of the beam, which is why I-beams are so strong yet so light, and why you can cut big holes through the center of the beam. The thin vertical part of the beam keeps the wide top and bottom surfaces of the beam separated, and those surfaces are what bear the load.

So if you put a post under each staggered joint, then the 2 x 12's will share the load and transfer it to the posts and the nails or screws won't be bearing any shearing force/deflection load. They'll just keep the 2 x 12's together, and you won't need all that many of them.

If you build the beam with adhesive

It's a different story if you're building the beam up using some kind of permanent, waterproof construction adhesive (and you'll need a lot of it).

If you're using glue to make your beam, you're definitely going to need a few friends to help you move it into position after the glue has set.

You need to clamp the 2 x 12's together hard while the adhesive sets. You could use clamps (a lot of them), or lay the beam out flat and use weights (sandbags, whatever), or you could use screws. If you use clamps or screws maybe you could build the beam in place as you go, using temporary posts to hold it up as it sets.

I'd also expect that you would use the same adhesive liberally on the ends that butt together and make sure they are pressed hard together while they set.

Still, since you're making the beam yourself rather than buying engineered prefab beams, I think there's a fair chance you'd end up with a beam that's still weaker at the joints than an engineered beam would be.

And you do need to have an engineer or architect do some calculations to make sure that 40' beam can do what you expect it to.


This sounds like old school plaster on metal mesh, common for that era in apartments and condos. Hard as a rock. However, you'd have to open up the wall to find the concrete block that's most likely behind it, because the plaster is only supported by furring strips tacked into the blocks with nails. Do not be fooled if your stud-finder scores a hit. Don't be surprised if you find none, they're probably small metal c channels.

I would not employ "any other methods" then the appropriate lag screws into a wood stud or masonry fasteners into their appropriate substrate.

Long story short, installing this correctly in an apartment of your construction is unlikely. You'll shot your eye out, kid.


Since you've tried all the practical solutions with no success, I'm going to recommend a not so practical one but since it's a closet, it might work. Get a heavy duty plastic drop cloth and cover the entire closet floor. Tuck the edges into the baseboard or seal the edges with painters tape.


Easy peasy.

The black wires in the back of the box are certainly always-hot.

The white wires are certainly neutral, and they are using the receptacle to be a splice (i.e. To replace a wire nut) while also supplying the receptacle.

The red is your switched hot from the switch, which you defeated.

You want to add a third hot and neutral from your new cable.  It would also be nice to power the receptacle straight off the always-hot (black) and abandon that extra loop up to the switch.  It would also be nice to stop using those unreliable and troublesome "back stab" wire connections.

You can't use two wiring methods (backstab and screw) on the same receptacle, so you can't splice 3 wires to a receptacle.  The exception is the Leviton "screw-and-clamp" types, which support 4 wires per side and are about $3.00.  Alternately you could pigtail the receptacle.

So I would add the new cable.   Join the now-3 black wires on the brass side of the Leviton screw-and-clamp, or the 4 wires (with pigtail from the receptacle) with a red wire nut.   Same thing with the whites.

Red wire nuts are ideal to bind four #12s or #14s, it helps to tape any 2 wires together so you are trying to line up 2 bound pairs of wires instead of four loose ones.

As for the red, I would splice the existing and your new red together with a yellow wire nut. Cap the red wire off in the new receptacle, and also go back into the switch box and cap it off there.  Now it's de-energized, but it's in the wall in case the next homeowner wants to set up a switched outlet at either old or your new location.


What compound should I use to fill drilled holes in cinder block?

Quikrete mortar repair sounds like it would do the trick.


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


Installed Electric Tankless Water Heater - Internet loss when active

First, make sure that your three supply cables are paired properly.  The unit has 3 heaters internally.  There are several ways cables could be crossed that would result in power from 1 heater coming up one cable and returning on another cable.  The heater would work properly, but would kick stupid large amounts of EMF from the two imbalanced cables.  Just double-check it.

Or, the heater may be throwing high frequency electromagnetic hash, with the cable(s) becoming antennas and making this worse.  Now, electric resistive heating elements, alone, do not throw electromagnetic hash.  That would only happen from

a) control electronics, which will surely only be on one cable/circuit; or
b) power choppers ("dimmers") which could be on 1 or all of the circuits, but there'd be no useful reason to have them on more than 1 circuit.

Also, there's a thing I don't like about how Ecosmarts are installed - they expect you to cram three #8 cables through one 1" hole, which is a lot to ask, and requires just the right cable clamps to not violate Code.

I would install a 6" square deep or larger metal box right below the EcoSmart and a short EMT conduit nipple connecting it to the EcoSmart's wiring hole.  Bring the 3 cables into the large box with correct clamps; leaving space for up to 3 "surge suppressors" to be fit onto 3 knockouts.

Then I would consult with EcoSmart and ask them a) which circuit powers the control electronics and b) whether they merely switch all 3 heaters, or whether they use power choppers, and if they do, on which circuit(s).

On the circuits which do not use choppers or electronics, those can be wired straight through the 6" box, up the conduit nipple and to the terminals.

For the circuit(s) which do use choppers or electronics, you run a pigtail from the EcoSmart's terminal into this box.  Then you mount a "surge suppressor" in one of the knockouts (or not, if it's a type that can live inside the junction box e.g. Meanwell SPD-20-277P). Then join those wires to the power line from the panel. This wires the Ecosmart and the suppressor in parallel (the usual way you "tee" a connection) - it's not wired in series like a switch.

At this point, the surge suppressor(s) should be damping out the EM interference before it leaves the metal faraday cage of the Ecosmart + junction box.

I suppose Ecosmart could build this into the product, but that would raise the price-point, and so you might not have selected the product.


Low water pressure in a specific sink after turning off the supply lines

Many faucets have an aerator device and a wire mesh screen at the point where the water comes out. The piece is screwed on. If your faucet has something like this, remove it and check for debris. (Pay attention while disassembling: the order and direction of the parts matters with some designs.) The assembly uses a "normal" (right hand) thread, but often hard water deposits make it difficult to turn.


How do I turn my top-heavy headboard into a freestanding headboard?

The bed frame that you showed at the link (pictured below) is, as you have determined, not at all suitable for having a large headboard attached to it.

This frame is really meant to be used without any surrounding bed adornment or to be used as a mattress support inside of a full surround bed set. The link picture tells it all:

The side panels of this bed set adjoin to the headboard to make a nice solid support.

I would never make a headboard by a bed free standing; especially one that is five feet high. The last thing you would ever want is the thing tipping over on you when you are sleeping in the bed or doing some active activity on or near the bed.

One choice you have is to construct a full bed set. Alternatively you could DIY a support frame that sits directly on the floor and bolts to your head board at one end. The corners of this frame could be joined using pieces of angle iron screwed to the wood. The picture below could give you an idea to work with. Such a floor frame could be made shorter and narrower than the mattress so that it is kind of under the bed. You could even make it out of dimension 2x8 lumber and pad it with a fabric or upholstery material.


It sounds like you have 2 problems:

"constantly filling"- the fill valve (often referred to as the ballcock valve) needs repair. Often this is simple, get as much information on the valve make and model (often there are maker's marks on the valve itself) and buy a rebuild kit at a good local plumbing shop.
"water continues to drain out"- the flush valve (this is whatever plunger/ball/flapper type sealing apparatus that is raised/lifted/moved when you press the flush button/lever) needs repair or replacement, same advice for that as in prior step.

Note- if you were to include pictures of the internal tank components we might be able to give more information.


Can Lights' bar hangers not long enough to span trusses (New construction)

Similar to @dandavis' comment, but you probably don't need to run the 3rd board.   Just nail two boards perpendicular to the trusses, spaced about 18" apart, and nail the canned light to those (so the light housing will be rotated 90 degrees from what you are showing in the picture).


How do I remove stick on tile residue from a plywood subfloor?

The sticky residue shouldn't be an issue once you have laid your underlayment. After that point the installation process will have the desired floating affect.
Side note: The sticky subfloor might actually aid in keeping the underlayment in place while your vinyl flooring is installed.


Add motion sensor and timer so either can turn on front lights

That can be done, but it's not a standard setup.

The old-style solution requires a box somewhere with relays in it. The switch, timer, and motion detector are wired to the relays, and their controlled output contacts are wired in the appropriate combination to produce the behavior you want. That combination is then used to control power going to the light. You might have trouble getting a home inspector to approve this if it isn't done by a pro... and I'm not sure even then.

The modern solution would be to use home automation components.  Replace the existing switch with one that can be remotely controlled and that also informs the central control unit when it has been switched manually.  Install a motion detector that talks to the central control unit. Then set that controller's clock correctly, and program it to signal the switch to turn on and off in response to the proper combination of these inputs. Much easier to install, passes code, probably no more expensive after everything is accounted for, can be built upon if you want to do other fancy home  control later. RECOMMENDED  SOLUTION.


Question on toilet mounting; No visible bolts?

Many toilets are held in place around their bases with silicone sealant only these days, especially if the cistern is fastened to the wall.

No toilet I have ever seen (in 30 years in trade) is mounted directly from underneath i.e. accessed from under the floor).

Many modern toilets have a pair of plastic multiholed brackets that are screwed to the floor, the toilet drops over these and screws through the side of the pan hold it in place. Silicone sealant is still advised.

Older toilets screwed directly through the pan base into the floor.

Anyone seen anything else?


1) Yes, your interpretation of the layout and markings seems to be correct.

2) No, it's not a problem, it's a very typical setup. You can have breakers totalling more than the total capacity of the unit, on the ground that you are unlikely to be running each circuit at or near capacity at the same time.

A MCB (or RCD, fuse, etc) is designed (and sized) to protect "downstream" of it, not those "upstream". Ie the 6A breaker on the left of the consumer unit above is there to protect the 1mm^2 or 1.5mm^2 cable that is connected into it, as those cables can safely handle a 6A load. They aren't there to protect devices further upstream.


Ethernet cable instead of Thermostat wire?

I wouldn't do it. The next poor sod (who may be you) trying to fix something (or perhaps changing the system!) is expecting to find properly colored #18 AWG wire.

Instead they'll find #24 wire in all these weird (to them) colors. You're saving yourself some money now, and making someone else's life difficult down the line.

And of course, if you or someone else later change to a system that requires the #18 wire, then it's got to be ripped out and re-run, which is another pain in the neck for someone.

I advise against doing non-standard things that are going to cause someone extra work in the future!


this is the best system to paint anything from plastic to stainless steel

Don't deviate or skip any steps.

1.clean thoroughly with acetone or MEK.

2.mechanically abrade with 180-240 grit (higher for smoother finish, but less lifespan, coarser for rougher finish but better adhesion) sandpaper

3.wipe again with acetone or MEK

4.rust convert any surface rust (on steel only) with 3M marhyde or corroseal rust converter

5.prime with any UMA primer like XIM400

6.paint with devthane 379 aliphatic urethane enamel.

Done!


What is this pipe called, and how does it work? (Round II)

Yes, it's a vent for a toilet. If it were an in-floor shower, you might see a P-trap and vent, but the toilet has the trap included in the fixture.

The reason you see the vent here and not other locations is that a sink will be vented starting in the wall rather than inside the floor, and the toilet is often after the sink, making the line from the sink to the toilet a wet vent for the toilet. In the pictured situation, the toilet is at the end of the line, and without a wet vent it needs a dedicated dry vent.


PVC pipe is actually welded together by the glue. The two mating surfaces softened by the glue actually intermingle and fuse. When the glue cures the pipe and fitting become a single PVC piece.   Temperature, among other factors, effect the time it takes for the bond to reach full strength. If I remember correctly the glue directions state (paraphrase): "let the joint cure undisturbed for 12(?) hours. Reaches full strength in 24 hours".   I've found the joints hold best when using a PVC primer with the glue. Also use a "full bodied-type" glue also labeled as a "hot" glue. It preforms better when the pipe is leaking water and in cooler climates.  As far as your joint being under stress due to a wrong trench angle shave the trench wall to allow the pipe and fitting to un-bend. This isn't as important as ensuring that the mating pieces are clean, that a full coating of glue is applied to the entire mating surfaces of both parts and that the pieces are pushed together fully and then held tightly for several seconds.


What kind of sand should I use for a sandbox?

Industrial sand often contains fine silica dust and really shouldn't be used for sandboxes, as that dust can be inhaled, which isn't good for you.

Dust-free sand (Such as Sakrete play sand) or non-silica sand (Such as Sandtastik) would be your best choice.


If the floor framing is wide open, snap a chalkline on the side of the joist and run your circular saw on that. You could go so far as to screw a guide to the joist if you don't trust your skills, but it's a matter of finding a comfortable position and bracing against the joist with your hands. Just keep the saw table tight to the joist to keep the cut square.

Do investigate why that joist is high, though. Is it just warped? Bad from the mill? Hung up on a beam where the framing around it has settled or sagged? You may not want to fix the problem this way if you find something underneath that should be fixed instead.


What could cause tap water to become smelly after a while?

Get the water tested first to determine the source of the smell.I would test three samples,out of the well but before the softener,after the softener but before the tap and at the tap.This will isolate each componant as the source.Don't forget the fridge door dispenser if you have one.The smell may not be evident until it absorbes oxygen from the air.


What can I do to eliminate the stickiness of my oil-based wood stain?

If you were using a combined stain/varnish (likely with the Minwax brand), it was probably outdated. They can expire. Removing it's going to be essentially a matter of stripping the wood bare and starting again.

If you were using a real stain, they normally aren't applied like paint -- they're flooded onto a surface, allowed to sit a bit to soak in, and the excess is then wiped off before the piece is allowed to dry. This provides only color, not protection; a layer of varnish/lacquer/shellac should be applied over stain to seal it.


Why does my furnace need frequent power resets?

I had the exact same symptoms with my natural gas furnace, and it turned out to be the flame sensor.

It's an L-shaped metal bar (but can also be straight, depending on model) that detects if there are flames actually coming out, and turns off the gas if not. It had a white high-temp wire connecting it to the control board. Taking it out, cleaning it with some steel wool fixed the problem for me.

If yours is like the above, you'll only see the back part of it and the bracket, as the L-shaped end is inside the heating unit.


I do believe this is a switch loop with the supply going to the box. I think Xb, Yb, A2, B2 is the hot supply leg and going to additional lighting or some outlets. Xw, A1 B1 and to the light is the neutral. Yw is the return from the switch (romex Y caries hot to the switch and the white returns the hot to the light when turned on. If this matches what you have the light fixture is wired backwards  and the Yw wire should be marked with tape, marker or paint (I like red for a switched leg but black is normal).


Is this a drain cover or an electrical outlet cover?

My bet would be on it being a receptacle. Typically floor boxes like this are installed raised up a little, so as to accommodate carpet or other flooring.

I would also bet on it being a single outlet. Most likely the center cap is covering the outlet and the outer screws are there to hold everything on. Since we can see a shadow from the center box, I'd say pry it off of there as best you can.


Where should I place electrical outlets in waterfall island?

According to NEC 2020, you need 1 for the first 9 square feet and another for each 18 square feet.
92" x 39" = ~ 25 square feet. So you need at least 2.
I would put one duplex receptacle on each end. That would be better than flush mounted receptacles (big concern about spills). But you can certainly have more receptacles, and that may be a good idea. For example, 4 - one near each corner - would allow for blender or other appliances on the "work" side while leaving the "stool side" receptacles available for phone chargers.


Is this an Ethernet cable running to my alarm panel?

So I think it actually IS an Ethernet cable.
Looking farther into the hole on the cable markings, I see "ETL VERIFIED TO TIA/EIA 568B."
However, I think I don't know where the cable comes out on the other side. The ones in the "structural panel" that are yellow are all rated CM and this one is CMR, so I don't think it is the same cable.