Electric range's clock/timer went out and oven bake/broil will not operate

I had always wondered why a range outlet needed a Neutral wire. I could understand the need for 240V for the elements but why would we need the neutral to make the 120V loads. Apparently you need the 120V loads for the clock and for the 120V outlet that some stoves have. So it sounds like your 240V loads aren't having a problem but your 120V load (clock) is.
It would be interesting to know what readings you are getting on your receptacle of your plug. Thats definitely the first place to start.

Doing all the possible combinations you should get all these readings

Hot to hot: 240V
Hot to Neutral : 120V
Other Hot to neutral : 120V
Hot to ground: 120V
Other hot to ground: 120V
and Neutral to Ground: 0V

First check by sticking your meter in the front of the plug. Did you get those readings? If so its probably the prongs themselves inside the plug. Sometimes they get loose. So when you stick your range plug in, they just aren't getting good enough contact. A new range plug ($10 will help that). If you don't have a meter, and you don't wanna buy one, I would probably just change the plug (the electrician would have let you know if funny voltages were going on I am sure).
Second, if you did not get those readings check the back of your plug, where the wires connect. Are the screw tight? Did the readings come out properly or are they still wrong? IF they are wrong, Its back to the panel to make sure the neutral and both the hots are not loose in the panel.

Please be as sure as you can the circuit is off! Always make sure there is an indication its on (stove light or element on- than turn off the breaker checking that it turns off). I like the follow up by testing with a meter too, if you have one!


What height should bathroom receptacle be off the ground?

There are no set rules for the height of receptacles on walls or over counters, even in a bathroom. Good practice is to keep them at least 4 inches above a counter top or backsplash and not directly over a sink or under a window. You can install them where ever they look good to you, but try to keep them as far left or right of the faucet as practicable.  Of course, all bathroom outlets must be GFCI protected.


What is this bathroom basin tap connection and can I replace it myself?

First find out were leak is coming from. I like to use toilet paper it shows very little trace of water. Water could be splashing through hole you pointed out. Top hose connection could need new washer. You can steal one from hose you have that doesn't fit.


Is it better to have acrylic window inserts than storm windows for soundproofing?

Although this may be some what an opinion based question shopping questions are off topic. Storm windows create a extra air chamber and do a good job of dampening outside sound if properly installed.
I don’t know if I would want acrylic windows unless sandwiched with glass because acrylic scratches so easily but you may be talking about a window technology I am unaware of.


Are the grounds and neutrals in this electrical subpanel reversed?

Whoever wired this panel simply was not paying attention

The installer who wired this panel did not pay attention to the schematic on the label, assuming that removing the bonding strap was enough here.  However, the split ground design of these Murray panels means that the left-hand bar is factory bonded to the case, with the right-hand bar being the only neutral bar, when the bonding strap is detached from the neutral bar.

Sadly, the only fix for this is to move all the neutrals over to the right-hand bar and move all the grounds over to the left-hand bar, pigtailing extra wire onto them as needed, as the bonding screw on the left-hand bar on these panels is factory-fitted and not intended to be removed in the field.


Can I use construction adhesive to mount a 4' LED Shop light on a Flexicore ceiling?

I would not use adhesive to mount a LED fixture. The LED fixtures I use have large heat sinks on the top of the fixture to dissipate the heat generated. Gluing the fixture could cause 2 problems:

The glue would not allow free airflow on the top of the fixture causing a higher temperature than the LEDs are rated for and this could severely reduce their life.
How to remove a dead glued to the ceiling fixture.

I guess there could be A 3rd reason what to do when my closet catches fire from a fixture that was not installed per the listing instructions ( ok this one is a stretch because the drivers usually shut down when they overheat).

I would check into flexcore and see the mounting methods available.


drawer face connector name - ikea part number 126888 - blum drawer face

IKEA have a 'Contact Us' page where you can order spare parts.

For instance this is the page I land on in the UK, and there is a section at the bottom where you can enter a part number:


Help finding a saw blade to cut clay bricks

Buy a blade to cut masonry, that information is usually made clear on the blade.

Do not buy a blade rated for metal either cutoff or other, metal blades will blunt easily and may well break with possibly serious consequences.

Make sure you have, and wear the recommended safety gear, good eye protection is more than common sense.


I can't disagree with Paul's response especially when it comes to safety. There are certainly a few things that can be considered here and if you are uncertain I would recommend an electrician because what you describe should never be able to happen and now that is has been identified correcting it is crucial.
Given that you can measure near 120, but it is significantly lower than expected, you almost CERTAINLY have a high resistance connection and this is a recipe for fire. It is possible this is a phantom voltage, but should be treated as live until proven otherwise. Intentionally presume fire is imminent, it could happen at any moment. Now that I got the warning "no kidding this is serious" part out of the way:
Possible likely causes that come to mind:

Aluminum wiring: If your home has aluminum wiring, let us know. There are other posts on this topic that go into details how to resolve this issue short of replacing all wire.
Stab locks/backstabs: these are just... bad. If in the path of your investigation you find these types of connections, fix it. Your future self will thank you.
Bad wire nut connections: this can happen with poor or sloppy twists on wires, or people improperly joining stranded wire with solid wire, loose connections, over-tightening, or just vibrations for a poorly mated connection or a cramped box
Bad Switch, Light Fixture, Outlet, or Breaker: There may be more options here based on what you are running on this circuit, but basically, ANYTHING in the path could be worn out

Steps to resolve:
[Notice: when opening or touching wire, secure power, turn it back on when ready to test]

Identify everything ON THE CIRCUIT shared with this light
If you have an outlet, or other easy access location (be it the switch or the light), test HOT to GROUND, do you get 120V? If so, this means you have a bad Neutral (typically white) return to the box, anywhere in the path (but likely near your light/switch)
If you tested less than (say 114V) from the Hot to Ground, then the issue is on the HOT (typically black); with same location notes as #3
Was there anything else on the circuit from #1? If so, isolate those items, and test the light outlet again, is the voltage higher or lower than the initial 80v? (say +/- 3v) when tested HOT to NEUTRAL
If the voltage on #4 goes up or fluctuates, greater than a few volts, then the issue is most likely upstream and this helps you identify where to check first. Check the items HOT to NEUTRAL moving towards the breaker until (if) you get near a 120v reading. If the voltage stayed near the 80V or you cannot perform a test like #4, then just start from the light fixture and work backwards.

In either case, there is and has been a bad connection in your circuit for possibly a long time. You should check all connections from the light back to the breaker panel. High resistance connections draw more current, thus, more heat. So other connections in the circuit could be, or become, compromised.
Correct any and all bad connections, and replace wiring if sheathing is melted. Contact an electrician if any of this is even remotely questionable.


I think I overloaded a wall outlet and the breaker never tripped

This is not good! What size breakers are on those circuits?T here are definitely signs of arcing and burning on some of the neutrals that could be caused by loose connections. Turn off the power to those circuits, cut the burnt part of those white wires off, strip off 1/2" of the insulation and insert the wires in different holes in the neutral buss and torque connections to specified values. Check to make sure that if there are any multi wired branch circuits the two hot legs are on different poles. If they  are on the same poles you will be overloading and burning the neutrals. Is this something you just happened to find? Maybe it's an old problem someone previously did a poor job of fixing. Or were you experiencing problems and smelling burning and went looking for the problem?


What specific fitting do I need to connect a 1/4" copper refrigerator water tube to a 3/4" steel water line that's already in use?

I think kitchen sinks are 3/8" (but I can never remember). So you'll want a 3/8" female, 1/4" male, 3/8" male tee. You should be able to find one at the local big box, or hardware store.

Something like this

Shut off the water using the shutoff valve.
Remove the existing supply line.
Attach the tee where the supply line used to be.
Connect the sink supply to the 3/8" male outlet on the tee.
Connect the refrigerator supply to the 1/4" outlet on the tee.

NOTE: Use your preferred pipe dope method (tape or goop), however, since it's a brass fitting dope should not be required.


How should dual motion sensors be connected?

I have done this with up to 3 sensors (all on the same circuit) quite a few times with generic motion sensors for myself and customers that liked the way it worked, I tie the reds together but these all must be on the same branch circuit. Just a note you may want an override like if having a party to light up the house / driveway constantly I did this by using a 3 way switch one side went to the lights directly the other to the motion sensors, with the switch in the up position they were on 100%, with the switch in the down position it powered the motion sensors and when any or all the sensors were triggered the lights will stay on until the last sensor times out. The only problem with this setup is when 1 sensor fails on it takes a bit of work to troubleshoot but on my own home I think I have lost 2 sensors since 2000 on a 3 sensor system.


What is an alternative to a vacuum cleaner for cleaning carpets?

Use a carpet sweeper.

Bissell sells several models of mechanical manual sweepers -- an invention that's been around in some form since the 1880s. They work, but only to an extent. For deep cleaning you'll have to use a vacuum or roll up your carpet and take it in to the pros.


Should I be concerned? Wires look burned

It is possible that much of the dark brown staining is grease that has accumulated from the stove, oven and broiler which has darkened with heat.

However, the device that is bundling the wires near the top definitely looks as if it has been degraded by heat. Also, if enough grease accumulates and it is overheated, the grease itself can become a fire hazard.

I would seriously consider cleaning up all the darkened areas to remove the grease, checking the wires to see if the seem brittle or charred in any way and possibly replacing the wiring bundle.

You also should check to make sure that there is no blockage of venting (or gaps in venting pipes/tubes) that is causing hot gasses to be misdirected to this area.


Once it gets close to the top, you hire a company with a « sludge gulper » to come and empty it.

Had a house with a septic tank and it had clay pipes which had shifted over time so had to empty the tank, repair and replace pipe.

Once done it worked fine.


Can I exchange a chimney flue for a larger diameter flue?

first thing to understand is gas appliances use different materials and protocols than wood burning appliances.  they are not interchangeable.

if you have a preexisting ceramic flue or stone flue thats large enough for the new liner, then it should be pretty simple.  if its going into a ceramic or stone flue, it doesnt need to be double walled in the chimney, just if it passes out into the room (as a lateral or vertical connector).  its pretty common here in ontario to use 8in or 10in flexible stainless flue liner pipe to do these type of retrofits. however, it could be smaller for a smaller unit.  some zero clearance units have exhausts of 6in.

if you have to install a new larger flue, it will be very costly and invasive as it will essentially mean replacing the entire chimney column from the basement flue port up to the roof.

i would start with calling a licensed fireplace installer to come have a look.


How to approach fixing this kitchen sink faucet leak at the base

It is difficult to determine the source of the leak from your pictures, water leaking down the chrome faucet body is almost impossible to see without careful scrutiny; it could be coming from one or more of several components.
I will address a likely cause and help you on your way to disassembly and troubleshooting.
When the spout swings around it does so while riding on two rubber o-rings. Water enters the spout from the main mixing valve and these o-rings prevent that water from leaving the spout except for at the sprayer head. The o-rings get worn flat over time, and the seal is compromised, they will be located near the top and bottom of the spout body:

To remove the spout and change the o-rings, you must remove the handle and the retaining cap. Start by using a small flat screwdriver to remove the trim plug that hides the handle retention screw:

There will likely be a set screw in there, possibly requiring a hex wrench. Remove the handle, the retaining cap, then pull up on the spout to remove it. I would suggest replacing all seals, o-rings, valve cartridge at this time. And get some waterproof plumber's grease, it will improve longevity of the spout o-rings and make your spout swivel nicely.


Is there a proper way to fill an electrical panel?

The main thing is to watch your stab limits.   Breakers clip on to panel parts called "bus stabs".  They have a practical current limit, often stated on the panel label.
Some people get it in their head "put the biggest breakers up top" (as if to reduce the few inches current must flow down the bus, as if that matters).  Then they fit a 100A breaker opposite a 50A breaker, and voilà, they have put 150A on the bus stabs in the first two rows.
Also beware of "double-stuffing" panels - lots of people get the 'bright' idea to save themselves the cost of a pizza by getting the smallest panel they can.  Then they either choose from the outset, or are forced into later, going with "double-stuff" breakers that put 2 breakers effectively in 1 space (or 2 240V breakers in 2 spaces).  I recently saw a setup that had a 40/40 quadplex across from a 30 2-pole.   The person wanted to double-stuff the 30 to a 30/50 to feed a subpanel.  Notice a problem? You now have an 80A (40/40) breaker across from an 80A (30/50) breaker.  Stab limits again!
Go big. Go really big. Spaces are cheap.  Regrets are expensive.


Is the ventilation in my utility closet a construction mistake?

The furnace has the intake and exhaust of a sealed unit but the water heater is an old style open burner. The water heater requires the outside vent. The size of the vent is based on the BTU rating of the water heater. I would not close off the vent because this provides the fresh air for the water heater.


How can I tell water pressure is too high for the washing machine?

Water pressure gauges that connect to garden hose fittings are common at home stores in the US.  I assume you are from elsewhere because of the units you used for pressure, but, for instance, at Home Depot the gauges are found in the lawn sprinkler area because water pressure is an important consideration for the design of a sprinkler system.

You may have to look around at stores that sell irrigation or general plumbing supplies to find one.  For an online search "water hose pressure gauge" should give plenty of results.  Of course I'm also assuming that your washing machine uses the same fittings as a garden hose, so make sure you get the right connector (again, standard in the US).


I take it these are powered speakers plugged into the computer?  They usually have very cheap, poorly-shielded little amplifiers in them which are good at demodulating radio and playing it out the speaker.  A mobile phone call nearby will typically also cause a bunch of beeping and "dirtdirtdirt" noises.

If your computer has a three-pin plug but is plugged into an ungrounded outlet or the ground is faulty on that outlet, that is a safety issue and may also contribute to the noise.

If you've got some $2 earbuds, plug those into the PC and see if you get radio noise.  If the earbuds are quiet and produce the PC sounds properly, then you know the problem is probably with the powered speakers.  If the earbuds also play radio, then the fault is either in the computer or its grounding.


The website you linked to that sells the filters has this line in the description of the hood:

  ...a thin aluminum filter traps grease even before reaching the fan blades...

Based on the other diagrams of the product, the only place the filters can go is over the vane guards.  I guess there is a chance the filter sits right inside the vane guard, because the guard is described as "washable" as well, but that should be easy to determine once you have the filters.

Unless you do a lot of frying, the filters might not be necessary.  I assume that is why it is an optional accessory.


what can be used as a small container for paint?

Can I use plastic?

"Paint kettle"

I have a few of these but I often use an old (but clean) glass jam-jar.

I also clean my used paint kettles.

  can I throw the latex paint with primer plastic container into the recycle bin

Hell no! Yikes!

In my part of the planet, liquid paint has to be taken to a household waste recycling centre and placed in the "paint" receptacle there.

If you used the remaining paint to paint some old cardboard boxes or newspapers, after it dries you can place the result in the normal (non-recyclable) rubbish-bin/trash-can. Some people suggest mixing the paint with sawdust/shavings etc to solidify it for disposal, but I didn't find that at all satisfactory.


Move water heater to location with smaller diameter pipes

Whether the 1/2" dia pipe will provide sufficient flow depends on your requirements. Personally I would use it. The flow would supply any ordinary single shower head. I would recommend a hand holdable, low flow shower head with a flexible hose rated at say 1.5 gal/min (5 to 6 L/min). This would save energy and water while giving a fully adequate shower.
The 1/2" dia pipe will mean that hot water from the heater will arrive at the shower quicker than with 3/4" pipe. There will also be less water wasted and less hot water wasted by abandonment in the line.


What does the watt rating on stove top coil burners mean?

The old coils are 1250W if your supply is 240Volts (normal USA/Canada single-phase), and 840W if your supply is 208Volts (usually from 3-phase power.)
The new coils are not the same power rating - they are 1500W on 240V and 1130W on 208V, so 120% - 134% more powerful on 240 & 208V, respectively. That may be a problem if the range controls and wiring are designed only for the lower wattage elements it came with. Or it may not be a problem if the range has the capacity to run them safely (I recall getting a "heavy duty canning element" for an 8" burner that both had a stronger coil support, more elevation from the stove surface, and more wattage, which the appliance store listed as being a compatible upgrade for my range.)


What trim material can be used around a 6" circular permanent hole in drywall?

You could use a 6" hole saw that can be used to cut holes for recessed light cans. These can be found at any big box hardware store. After that if you wanted to trim it up you could use a 6" recessed can trim and baffle. These can be bought for under 10$ at any big box store as well. These usually attach with springs but i would think you could screw it to the drywall or even use a construction adhesive.


Fridge and freezer on 15amp circuit break via 14-2 wiring

You will be fine on the same breaker.

Starting current for refrigerators and freezers is not as bad as you think. Especially, new appliances. They are very efficient and will rarely at exactly the same time.

Good luck!


Old recessed radiators with reflector foil

If you want to make the effort, you could fish the reflectors out, clean them, and reinstall them. But vacuuming the radiators may make as much or more difference...

(The idea behind these is supposed to be to encourage more heat to go into the room, rather than heating the wall. I don't know whether anyone has actually measured whether this makes a difference or not, or if putting non-reflective insulation there would work just as well or better...)


setting up long runs of hardwood flooring: where to square from?

If flooring is to run into all room eventually and it is a wood floor, start on your longest wall which is usually in the hallway leading to the bedrooms (a sketch would have really helped on this). if the rooms off of the hallway or out of square, the adjustment can be made at the door where the wood floor is the shortest, by tapering that joint in the door by 1/8" in a 32" joint will change the lay of the floor going into the bedroom by a 1/2" in a  10' room. More adjustment can be made by setting the nails harder on one side of the room compared to the other. I have used that technique in "steering" the floor over a long run after the rows are well established.

Any room that the flooring runs into can be adjusted slightly as well without seeing a noticeable curve in the floor. I also have done so much as slightly tapering flooring to aid in "adjusting" the floor going into a room.


How do I ground a new outlet that only has the black/white wires?

You can Install a GFCI outlet that has an 'equivalent' protection to be used in outlets where PE is not present.


What prevents water from getting underneath these roof shingles?

Yes, there are several things required to make a “valley” installation waterproof.

There are two ways to install valley shingles: 1) “open cut”, and 2) “closed cut”.

Here’s an illustration of each:

http://esgreenville.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/timberlineinstallation.pdf

You have the “closed cut” system.


Should I carpet the stairs or install hardwood flooring first?

Generally carpet is self edging,while hardwood floors are not (they usually gap from the wall a bit and call for a molding over the edge).

Install the floor and leave the gap at the first riser, without a molding, and bring the carpet down the riser and blind edge it.  You can easily undo it in the future.  This would allow you to replace the carpet, as Tester101 says, or to shift back to no carpet. Just add molding.


From your side view it looks like there may be a minor leak around the valve stem just behind the faucet handle. You can investigate this by first removing the faucet handle. Then loosen and remove the part pointed to below:

(Do this with the faucet initially shut OFF).

Under this part you should find a rubber type part that fits around the valve stem. When this part is screwed in tighter it will compress the rubber part around the valve stem to keep it from leaking.

Sometimes with age this rubber type part will get hard or cracked so that it can no longer provide a good seal against the valve stem. In this case it is necessary to replace the rubber part.

There are also cases where the valve stem itself can get oxidized and/or corroded to the point that it no longer presents a nice smooth surface to the rubber seal part. It may be necessary to shine up the valve stem using a fine grade of steel wool.

Sometimes it can be beneficial to lubricate the valve stem and inner surface of the rubber type seal part using some petroleum jelly.


Can I turn the water supply to the shower off here (picture)?

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


I would address whatever caused the subfloor to sag that much in the first place.  OSB decking in a humid area will have all sorts of problems, especially crawlspaces with backed fiberglass pinned up against them.  All wood, even engineered woods like OSB and plywood, lose a lot of strength when they've swelled up due to moisture issues.

I had a similar situation this last year and was able to address it by using well-placed screws from below.  That was 5" wide T&G, though.  obviously you're flying blind from below, so you have to guess where the center of the boards are.  With hardwoods (and especially narrow 2" seasoned white oak) I would fear splitting the board if you were either too close to the edge or end.  Oh yeah - and this job is awful to do while in a crawlspace.  I mean awful awful.  Like "I am never doing this again IF I survive this ordeal" type of awful.

I didn't finish one room, so it still squeaks when you walk over it.  However, that squeak doesn't seem to bother me nearly as much as it did before I decided it was a good idea to take 5 years off of my life by doing that type of work in that inhospitable location.


How can I wire this replacement ceiling fan?

Is there a switch in the room, and does the current ceiling fan have both a light and a fan?

The easiest way I've found to do this is to get a multimeter($5) and use it to determine which wire is hot (in the US, this is usually the black one).  The next challenge is to determine which wire (if any) is switched), and you do that by checking each wire with the switch on and off.

Chances are, your new ceiling fan has hot (black), neutral (white), and ground (green).
Typically, you would hook it up black -> black, white ->white, and green to either green or to a green grounding screw in the junction box, and you would cap (i.e. put a wire nut on) the switched wire.


How do I refinish a bathroom ceiling after it got moldy and peeled?

Paint may have helped.  It would act as a bit of a seal, causing the water to drip off rather than absorb into the texture.
I would do it smooth.  A rough surface has a larger surface area meaning a larger surface for condensation.
I would recommend against texturing at a later date.
I would put a fan in.  It's a good idea to put it on a timer so that it turns off automatically.  This allows you to leave it running after you leave, and is also good for bathroom odors.  Also, be aware that cheap = loud when talking about fans.
Definitely put the fan in before. You're going to need to cut and repair drywall as well as drill through the brick to create a vent.  You'll mess up any work you've already done.


Significant change to the original problem:  The lighting dimmed because the current regulator in the fan burned (or was burning) up.  I took it apart and found significant charring and plastic deformation inside.
I bought a similar model from ReStore and Frankensteined the two together into one working fan.
The three way switch had no impact on the fault as should have been noticed since the observed fan speeds only slowed when the light was turned on.
Thank you to those who read my problem and tried to help me solve it.


I agree with Jimmy Fix-it. You'll need to replace the valve entirely. It's a specialty assembly and not available to the public readily...that I've seen.

Can you just replace the seal on the grey cap and screw it back on to let it ride? IF so and everything's fine without the simply annoying drip, then take that road.

A Plumbing Supply store may be able to get you a new one. But, you need to figure out with them if you'll be sweating a new one on or going to a compression fitting, which needs to be longer if the old one's being cut off.

Alternatively. Is this part of leased equipment from the propane dealer? It may very well be a stretch. But, if so, then contact them and they will, typically, remedy the problem for free.

Of course, a Plumber might be your best bet in correcting more than this question. Is that valve assembly required or from another setup? Are those wacky reducers and not-yellow teflon tape okay? Is flex-line suddenly approved for outdoor use in a permanent installation? ...it's not, around me.


Should I insulate my rafters in addition to the ceiling in an unconditioned attic?

You should not. Because the attic is vented, the upper insulation does almost nothing. In the summer at the attic will get much hotter than it does now, increasing cooling costs.

Also, you would be creating what's known as a hot roof. This can be damaging to the roof sheathing and shingles.

Most truss bottom cords are 2x4. This is normal, and the insulation usually reaches much higher than the tops of the ceiling joists. The usual routine is to raise the floor with additional framing to allow for more insulation.


One option would be to drill holes through the post to allow you to use the lock that you have (or perhaps a slightly longer lock).


Are wood boxes sturdy enough to support a loft bed?

That's impossible to say because not all such boxes are built to the same specifications. Wood species and size, fastener type and schedule, and other factors vary widely. If forced to answer it would be no out of an abundance of concern for safety.
I would follow your plan, but lay 1x4 posts alongside the boxes where appropriate and aesthetically pleasing. Fasten the boxes to the posts and to the bed frame. Make sure it all has enough diagonal bracing, which is the most likely failure concern. That gets into design a fair bit, which isn't really on topic here.


Repairing Damaged Drywall Around a Bathroom?

To my mind the solution isn't dependent on your choice of joint compound (though topping compounds lack the vinyl component which can help with bonding). Even if you use concrete to coat it, what's behind it is still susceptible to water damage. Instead, moisture management and a good primer/paint coating is important. Your walls simply shouldn't be exposed to prolonged moisture.

I'd scrape away all loose material and finish the surface with whatever mud suits your fancy. Prime it with something that seals well, and use a high-quality topcoat that claims to bond well and protect against moisture damage.

An exhaust fan should be on a modern digital timer. Run it for at least two hours after a shower, as the moisture stuck to the tub and your towels takes a while to evaporate.


I would just angle the wall instead and leave plenty of room for a door.

My OCD likes right angles too but there is nothing wrong with a wall that runs at an angle, especially in this case.

Good luck!


Is it better to vent a bathroom fan out the soffit, the side of the house, or the roof?

As far as I know, it doesn't really matter as long as it's vented outside. Venting into the attic is Very Bad -- in the winter, the humid air will condense and (if cold enough) freeze, and you'll effectively have water in the attic.

For any vents, the straighter the run is, the more efficient and quieter it is. Avoid corrugated pipes, and avoid bends and elbows as much as possible. For that reason, going into the soffit almost guarantees you'll have more bends than going through the roof.

As an aside, I have two bathrooms, and they both have the identical fan (which is rated as very quiet). One bathroom has a 3" duct that is about 3' long, and goes almost straight out the side of the house (it's done with a small section of flex line that bends up and over be a couple inches, because I lined up the vent on the outside with the siding). The other bathroom vent has a 4" x ~6' line that has two sweeping turns and goes out the side of the house. The second one is noticeably noisier than the first.

As a DIY job, you'll also have to be sure you have the knowledge to cut a hole in the roof. I'd say it'd be far better to go out the side of the house (which is a bit easier to seal) than to go through the roof and cause a leak.


Toilet continually slowly drains days after I clear it

This problem could be caused by a bad slope in the waste line from the lower level toilet out to the exit point. As the upper level toilets are used the line to the lower toilet back fills and eventually creates the equivalent of a clog.


Lights wont turn off after switching dimmer types and changed again

Every switch sits in-between two hot wires. One is always hot, from the mains, and one is hot when the switch is active, and that one goes to the controlled device(s).

It sounds like you have connected the hot wire (black) from the mains directly to the hot going to the fixtures. The always hot switch should be connected to one black wire on the dimmer and the black from the fixture to the other black on the dimmer. Check the dimmer to see if there is a marking to indicate which is which.

The easiest way to test which black wires are which is to use a non-contact tester. Turn off the breaker. Separate the black wires, put a wire nut on the exposed end of each and turn the power back on. Check each black wire to see if it registers as hot on the tester. The one that is hot is the mains. The one (or more) that are not go to the fixtures.

In general, all white (neutral) wires are connected. This assumes the white wire is not being used as a hot line. If it is, it should be marked with a black marker or a piece of black tape. Similarly all greens and bare wires (ground) are connected.

Some dimmers need a neutral wire and some do not. It sounds like yours does. It should be connected to the other neutrals. Similarly the grounds should all be connected.


Adding an outlet to a 3 way switch on 'far' end

The solution is to replace the traditional 3-way switches with smart switches. Traditional switches need 2 travelers. There are smart switches that need only one wire for switched hot and somehow signal on that wire, freeing up a wire to use as constant hot. However you will need neutral.

If your configuration is:

Panel -> switch -> switch -> light

then you turn a traveler into hot.

If it is:

Panel -> light -> switch -> switch

then you turn a traveler into neutral. Except you have to be careful with colors so that neutral ends up with the white wire.


The metric I use is “Is anyone going to die, and will this last until I’m too old to care.”

A hand compactor is great for small areas, but to be honest, I’ve used neither up to 150 square feet / 12 square meters. Unless the slab is broken or unlevel, you have a great foundation and the slab will provided a good source of “levelness”.

The goal is to get the pavers level enough, with the sand underneath uniform enough, that any grade you’ve included for water management is maintained, and the pavers don’t wobble. That’s it — don’t overthink this.


Choosing a well filter for household use

Your cost restriction may not be easily met with my recommendation, but it's close. The DIY portion also requires that one be capable of managing PVC plumbing connections, which isn't particularly difficult.
I have a chlorine injection water treatment system that the local plumbing supply house would have installed for US$3000, but sold me the components for about US$1800.

The above image from Clean Water Store shows the routing of pipes and components necessary to assemble such a system. The diagram is slightly different from my installation, only in that the injection port is between the pressure tank and the settling tank. It's called a contact tank in the image.
The incoming water has chlorine injected from the "Stenner pump" which may be a brand name. Not shown in the image is a flow switch, which engages the pump when water is being used by the house. The injection volume is adjustable. Chlorine and water is in the solution tank.
The combined chlorine and water then "rests" in the contact tank. Some of the iron (most of the iron) will react with the chlorine (rust never sleeps) and settles to the bottom. The remaining iron will still be dissolved in the water.
The chlorine is removed by the carbon filter. One adjusts the chlorine injection so that the water exiting the carbon filter has no chlorine level. Pool test strips are useful for this testing.
Not shown in the diagram but present in my system is the water softener/conditioner, which will additionally remove some iron.
I have a pair of cartridge filters after the softener which are installed as pure white and when replaced every three months are iron-brown.
I can occasionally taste a bit of iron, but rarely is there any hydrogen sulfide smell, unless there's a failure somewhere in the system. It's necessary to check the solution tank periodically and refill it. The injection valve frequently collects iron deposits and has to be replaced. Both expenses fall into your US$250 limitation, although it was necessary to purchase the injection valve "duckbill" online to get a decent price. I believe it was six or seven dollars online compared to nearly thirty at the local supply house. I replace them every four months to avoid the nuisance of waiting for a failure.


Using a charcoal BBQ, how far should I be away from the house?

It really depends on the material of your house and the height of the overhang.

In one extreme, if you have a brick house with no overhang you can be almost right up against it.

Vinyl siding and/or 9' overhang is the other extreme. You should probably not be within 10' of vinyl siding.

Somewhere in the middle is wood siding which probably will not burn but you might get paint bubbling if you are within 3'

As a general rule you don't want to be under a 1 story overhang which will hold heat and any sparks in.


You are correct. There is a pathological path from Neutral 2 back to the neutral bar in your service panel. Neutral 2 should not be connected to anything but the cold sides of the loads on Hot 2. You should track down and eliminate this path, even if you do not want to provide GFCI protection to the downstream loads. It is a persistent hazard to anyone working on the wiring, and may carry an unbalanced current that can lead to inductive heating.

The most likely culprit is a bootleg ground somewhere further along the daisy-chain. Other possibilities are an accidental contact between a bare ground wire and a neutral terminal screw, an unnecessarily borrowed neutral, or failed insulation in one of the loads.

You could start by unplugging everything from the downstream outlets. Keep checking the voltage between Hot 2 and Neutral 2. Remove the outlet cover plates and pull the outlet devices out of their boxes, without disconnecting any wires. You will probably eventually either disturb the accidental contact, or encounter a white wire that doesn't make sense.

As always, be careful around live wires. Wear gloves and try to handle devices with one hand only.


How to connect sections of black iron gas line?

Replace the whole lot with CSST.
Cut out piping in the middle, disassemble back to convenient locations, and re-connect using corrugated stainless steel tubing rather than hard black iron pipe. Sure, the CSST costs more, but routing it out of the way of your renovations will be much easier. Best of all: because the connectors spin freely you can easily join it up to the existing black pipes at both ends without special tools or obscure fittings.


Can I obtain grounding from a different outlet?

It is NOT safe to obtain the grounding from another outlet.

The grounding wire must follow along side the hot and neutral wires of the same circuit for the entire path back to the panel. The reason for this is to minimize the inductance in the event of a short circuit to any grounded metal, either in work boxes, or in the powered equipment itself (such as the multi-outlet box). Surge protection will be much less effective in cases where the surge is a differential between hot/neutral and ground (which actually is a common type of surge) due to this same inductance.

Inductance is minimized when the wires with the current going in both directions are close together. Their magnetic fields overlap and mostly cancel each other out (there will be a field inside the cable between the wires).  When the wires are far apart, their magnetic fields will extend a greater distance and there will be more inductance. Also, metal located inside the "loop" between the wires can be affected by the magnetics (sometimes in a hazardous way).

To correctly upgrade a 2-wire circuit to 2-wire-plus-ground circuit, the cable must be replaced with one that has integrated ground. In some rare cases, the proper cable may have been run, already, but an ungrounded outlet was used.

Simply running a single wire along side the old cable is also NOT safe.  The wires of a circuit, when conducting current, will try to physically move apart from each other due to the orientation of the magnetic field. Physically binding the new single wire to the cable with cable ties not further than 6 inches apart for the entire length could avoid that issue (but is still not code compliant). If you are doing that much work, just replace the cable with the proper type.  FYI, this was one of the hazards of older knob and tube wiring. Single wires inside conduit are known to move around, but the conduit sufficiently confines the movement so all you get is some noise.

In many cases you can obtain much (but not all) of the safety of grounding with the use of a GFCI outlet. The grounding wire still cannot be used in this case. It just gives a safer 2-wire load. It is not sufficiently safe for appliances that have frequent human contact, like a computer.


What should I do before re-painting my skirting boards?

If you want the boards to look brand spanking new again, you will want to go with method one. I'd use a heat gun to do it, and not the harsh chemical strippers. Either method takes about as long as the other and the heat gun method is less toxic, and, you either already have a heat gun and don't need to spend money, or you'll buy one and have it for a long time - they come in handy. You'll want a good organic vapor respirator for either method still, and a variety of scraping tools.

Method two sounds more appropriate if perfection is not important. Going this route, you'll want to start with various putty knives and scrapers and knock off any obviously loose and flaky paint, and then use 120 grit sand paper not to remove all the paint, but only to rough up the surface of any remaining paint that is sound and knock down any really high spots. This will leave you with patches of bare wood, and patches of sound, old paint. I don't recommend trying to sand off all of the old paint. If this is your goal, then go with method one. Also - buy expensive sand paper. Cheap sandpaper is a false economy as you'll burn through it so much faster than the good stuff.

Either way, you should use primer whenever painting bare wood, or a combination of bare wood and sound paint. You don't need primer when only painting over sound old paint.


Why does new Ikea furniture (Kallax) make a liquid sound when moving?

Yes, it can be very true indeed that the 'wooshing sound' that you are talking about is the result of the scrap material that was left unchecked during the production of the furniture. Many a times when hollow parts/ material (like the bamboo arms for wooden chair) are used for designing the furniture, the fine particles of wood dust or scraps resulting from the use of chisel or any other tool may get accumulated into these cavities.
I have been working as a furniture repair guy at the Austin Furniture Repair where I have a lot of these cases. So, rest assured as it might not really be that big a problem. Hope it helps!


Is it okay to use both the backwire holes and the side terminals on an electrical outlet?

There is no problem connecting wires to both the "back stab", and screw terminals of a receptacle.  As long as the terminals are rated for the size of wire being attached. For example. Most "back stab" terminals are rated for 14 AWG solid copper wire, whereas screw terminals are usually 12 or 14 AWG solid or stranded copper.

With that said... It sounds like your receptacles might be hooked up backwards.  The black ungrounded "hot" conductor should be connected to the brass colored screw, which is on the side of the receptacle with the shorter slot (at least in the US).


Do soft casters on rolling chars hurt hardwood floors?

If they are the soft urethane ones like those that are used at roller skating rinks, should be fine.

Check out the chart here and note that for hardwood floors, the wheel type is a function of (your + chair's) weight.

declaration:  not affiliated, related, in hock to or friends with caster city


Yes, that is absolutely correct.

When a neutral is disconnected from the neutral bus on the panel, what happens next is unpredictable.

If absolutely no loads are connected, the neutral wire will "float".  You will not be able to harness it for any useful work, but it will have a phantom voltage induced onto it by adjacent wires.  This doesn't have any real EMF behind it, and can't shock you.

If any load is connected, the load will be taking in line voltage and trying to return the current via neutral.  That means neutral will track with line voltage. If something gets between this neutral and either panel neutral or earth, they will indeed be in series with the load(s) and will not enjoy the experience none too much.  Worse, if they bridge a neutral that's downstream from a GFCI, the GFCI will not trip to protect you.

It's unpredictable because you never know when someone is going to throw a light switch or a thermostat will pop on.


Why does this toilet fill valve leak around the top?

That's a fairly popular fill valve. To open it:

Shutoff the water, you don't want a geyser.
Lift the float to the top position.
While holding up the float, push down on the top cap and twist the cap a quarter turn (I believe counter clockwise).

The cap will then lift off and you can inspect and clean any parts. Before reinstalling the cap, move any small parts to a safe location, get a small cup to place over the top of the valve, and turn on the water supply. This will jet water straight up from the top of the valve and clear out any debris.

Reinstalling the cap is the reverse of the above procedure. Put the parts back, position the cap back on top, lift the float, press down on the cap, and twist.

Note that if cleaning it doesn't work, it's fairly simple to replace this fill valve.


How to identify potentially unsafe electrical connectors in use?

Buy from reputable firms

Or to be more precise, don't buy from firms who have workers with apartments in Shenzhen or Hong Kong, because they spend so much time there turning over rocks looking for super cheap suppliers of goods to private-label. That means you can cross off the list:

eBay
Amazon Marketplace, and possibly "sold by and ships from Amazon" as well
Alibaba/AliExpress, obviously
The orange Borg
The blue Borg
The green Borg "11% off"

And we're down to pretty much Grainger, McMaster-Carr, maybe Fastenal though they have some dodgy stuff, and of course, your friendly neighborhood local electrical supply house.

It's the same rule as auto parts.  I buy my auto parts at shops which have a fleet of small pickup trucks because they do 90% of their business out the back door to mechanics.  Why?  Mechanics have to stand behind the work, it's their time, rep and loaner cars at stake.  A high failure rate will put them out of business.  It'll put me at the side of the road, so our goals align.

Oh, but price!!!

Electrical parts have a very low cost to weight ratio, and that makes them expensive to ship.  Another example of such a product is bottled or canned sodas.  For those, the distribution model of "mail order to the consumer" makes no financial sense, it makes sense to distribute bulk materials by truck to local outlets and sell retail.  You see that in prices, like $180 total to ship $105 of wire, or a 75 cent item at the electrical supply costing 75 cents "plus $6 shipping".

"But I have Amazon Prime! Shipping is freeeee!"

There's no free lunch.  You pay for the Amazon Prime shipping one way or the other, and the $99 membership fee is not the way. They overcharge for the item and lowball or zero the shipping.  Now that 75 cent item is $3 -- and if you go check out the fees Amazon charges its Marketplace partners to use Amazon fulfillment,  you quickly see why it's $3.

So to be competitive, there is huge motivation to use counterfeits.  And absolutely nothing prevents a Marketplace seller from selecting a genuine Wago SKU and claiming to have that exact item when it's actually a counterfeit, or right off the Wago assembly line that are either dumpster-dived QA rejects, or stolen good product.


How do I remove cat spray smell from the exterior of the house?

Short of industrial cleaners and Kilz Primer, I've not found a better product for dealing with organic compounds deposited by pets.


In answer to your question the wires you are looking at are part of a cabling system known a BX. It is a lot like AC or MC only it doesn't have a grounding conductor and the conductor insulation is a type RH or RHW which is a rubber insulation wrapped in cloth. The other cloth is just fill.

This type of wiring was used in the late 1940's, 1950's and early 1960's until a more modern plastic insulation type offered better protection. Bx was known to be the cause of some fires during its use and was outlawed in many municipalities. One because as you can see there was no anti-short bushing (sometimes referred to as red devils and other names), which cut the insulation and started a high resistance short. Also when exposed to harsh (outdoor) environments or high heat at a junction it would dry out and crack exposing the bare conductor. Also as I have mentioned before there was no acceptable ground connection.

I wouldn't go so far as to say this type of system is alright, but the key is the insulation if it is still malleable and covers the conductor well it should be OK. If it shows any sign of drying out and cracking it should be replaced, and if you are reconnecting it back up use the anti-short bushings to protect the wire.

Stay safe.


How do I remove a panel from the ceiling of my side porch?

These videos walk you through removing and replacing vinyl siding components:

This video walks you through the steps for removing soffit panels.
This video walks you through the steps for removing and replacing vinyl soffit panels.
This video walks you through the installation process for vinyl soffit and trim so you can have a deeper understanding of what you're working with.
This video walks you through the steps for removing and replacing vinyl siding siding so you can know what you're working around or if you find you need to pull some of the siding to get at the pieces you're focusing on.


I had the same issue recently on my HVAC as well.

You probably have a PVC pipe running from the bottom of the evaporator coil housing. The blockage is probably in there somewhere. You can disconnect the PVC and let the condensate drain into a bucket.

If it does drain cleanly into a bucket, your blockage is in that drain line. Either snake it out or replace it. For me, snaking a 3/4 inch PVC with several 90-degree bends was more difficult than buying a couple pieces and replacing the drain line with 45-degree bends that are less prone to becoming blocked.

I filtered the condensate where my new drain discharges into my sump with a paper towel and was shocked how much debris was being flushed out.


Wire nut tie together for a #4 braided aluminum wire?

He'll need to use a pull box to house this

Splicing of wire that fat can't be done in a regular junction box due to the fact regular junction boxes are too small to let the wire be bent in conformance with bending radius specifications.  Instead, what's needed is a NEMA rated (NEMA 1 if it's inside, NEMA 3R if it's outside) pull box, as these are available in dimensions that conform with the specifications in NEC 314.28(A)(2):

  (2) Angle or U Pulls, or Splices. Where splices or where angle
  or U pulls are made, the distance between each raceway entry
  inside the box or conduit body and the opposite wall of the
  box or conduit body shall not be less than six times the metric
  designator (trade size) of the largest raceway in a row. This
  distance shall be increased for additional entries by the amount
  of the sum of the diameters of all other raceway entries in the
  same row on the same wall of the box. Each row shall be calculated individually, and the single row that provides the maximum distance shall be used.

  Exception: Where a raceway or cable entry is in the wall of a box or
  conduit body opposite a removable cover, the distance from that wall to
  the cover shall be permitted to comply with the distance required for one
  wire per terminal in Table 312.6(A).

  The distance between raceway entries enclosing the same
  conductor shall not be less than six times the metric designator
  (trade size) of the larger raceway.

  When transposing cable size into raceway size in
  314.28(A)(1) and (A)(2), the minimum metric designator
  (trade size) raceway required for the number and size of
  conductors in the cable shall be used.

Note that for large raceways, this can lead to rather large boxes, so it may be best to mount the box to one side of the panel and leave a bit of slack length in the too-short run instead of mounting it above the panel, although mounting it below a bottom-fed panel may not be an issue, depending on the depth of the box.

4AWG Wirenut Not Found

Wirenuts are generally not made in large enough sizes to splice 4AWG wires, so your electrician will be using a different splicing device -- a mechanical setscrew connector, or Polaris™ connector as it is often called.  These, like wirenuts, are one-piece splicing units, but instead of twisting the wires together, each wire is individually attached using screws that clamp the wires down into a block of plated aluminum, much like a breaker box neutral or ground busbar.  While they are available in different configurations (one-sided, two-sided, in-line), most are like the picture below in that the screws sit under the caps on top while the wires go into the ports on the front and/or back (or each end) of the connector.  Furthermore, as a result of their construction, they can handle a variety of wire sizes (even in a single connector -- the smallest ones go from 14AWG to 4AWG, and the next smallest size starts at 6AWG and goes to 3/0 or more), and can handle any mix of copper and aluminum wire.


LED bulbs in chandelier periodically all blink at once

You need to install a new dimmer that is specifically qualified for use with LED type bulbs.

One common work around that you can use in the mean time to stop the blinking and flashing is to temporarily re-install one of the incandescent bulbs.


Can I use flexible tube to replace a segment of copper pipe?

There are flexible hoses made for connecting to water heaters but they are usually only a few feet long and are only meant to make it easier to swap the heater for maintenance. They are also much larger, usually 3/4" size, because they are feeding the entire house. The hoses you show in the picture are 3/8" and are only meant to serve a single small fixture.

If you are trying to go around obstacles consider using PEX tubing. You can connect a push-in fitting (like sharkbite) to the copper end and then run flexible PEX around the corner as long as you support it every few feet. However you may need to switch back to copper for the last 18" near the heater due to code restrictions on using PEX directly to the heater. The push-in fittings are more expensive but can be used for PEX to copper connections and require no soldering.


Can I split off a 20a with a conduit body?

You said metal conduit--1/2" EMT & rigid can have nine #12 thhn/thwn wires max fill per NEC annex C conduit fill.

The area of the conduit body would only be needed only if a splice is made in that location, so the derate for more than 3 current-carrying conductors would be the next concern. 4-6 conductors require a 80% derating but the higher ampacity 90 degree table can be used for derating and you still meet code because the derated value is 24 amps.

So this is safe for a 20 amp circuit(s).


Do you know any switches which turns on/off based on day light?

I was just looking at light switches last night at Home Depot.  There's enough options to make your head spin.

Photosensitive light switches are mainly used for outdoor applications, but some look like they should do fine indoors if oriented properly.

Automatic Dusk to Dawn Light Control - Screws into a light socket

Photocell Light Control Indoor Plug-in - Plugs into an outlet


Should I turn power to the leaking water heater off along with the water?

The heater is leaking.

Therefore, it does not hold water.

Water heater electric heating elements die a short, nasty death if they are powered up in air, rather than in water. Gas water heaters will burn out the bottom if the flame comes on with no water in the heater.

You should shut off the electricity or gas BEFORE you shut off the water, or very, very shortly thereafter, both to reduce damage to the heater (which may not matter much if it's leaking in a way that means it needs to be entirely replaced) and also to reduce risk of fire when heat is applied to a water heater not full of water.

If you are in a place where your water heater might freeze you should STILL turn off the heat source (electric or gas), and then drain all the water from the tank (and consider what a bad idea it is to locate your water heater where it can freeze in the first place, but that's an opinion...)

For most repairs and any replacement you'll want to drain any remaining water (amount depending on the location of the leak) anyway, but that's easier if you wait until it's cooled down some.


Washer Does Not Drain Water Before First Spin Cycle Begins

Is it draining at all, but just not fully? Does it eventually pump the water out, or is the water just sitting there at the same level no matter what?

Washing machines have a pump under the tub that pumps the dirty water out. These pumps often have a little mesh filter in front of them, sometimes there's also a filter on the outlet where the drain hose connects on the back of the machine. If these screens get plugged, the pump will be very slow and may not have enough time to clear the water out between cycles. So, if the pump seems to be pumping, just not quickly enough, check for these filters and/or check the pump itself for obstruction.

If the pump isn't turning on at all and the machine is just sitting full of water, google your machine for a troubleshooting diagram or parts diagram. Often, the pump circuit will have sensors or switches in it, that prevent the pump from turning on unless certain conditions are met. For instance, some machines will not turn the pump on unless they can detect that the lid is latched shut. Other times there will be a water level sensor or other sensor that the pump relies on. Troubleshooting guides provided by manufacturers (or just detailed troubleshooting info on appliance repair forums or blogs) will usually point these out and tell you how to check them.


If pipe has been frozen for a week, should I call a plumber?

I would only call a plumber if the purpose was to have the plumber reroute the lines to an interior wall where the pipes will not freeze.  I can't see paying someone $100 an hour plus for holding a hair dryer or mini-blow torch next to a pipe to get it to thaw.  Your plumber plumbs not perform magic.

If your pipes are freezing to this extent though I think that you will eventually need to have things reworked.  Spend your plumbing money on this.


Terminology for the sidewall of a mezzanine floor

Some more research led me to the answer: it is called the fascia. The gallery is supported by beams called headers. These beams are covered by the fascia, which in the example above is coffered paneling.


What is the best way to mount a flag on shake (shingle) siding?

You need to find framing members to screw the bracket to (studs) most homes built in this era have a sub siding and then the exterior siding.
For the best strength close to a corner or window frame may provide multiple studs the width of your bracket, if not a single stud on one side with the other side screwed into the siding. The side that you connect to a stud we would normally use lag bolts 1/4” is a common size but the length varies depending on the load being applied , for a 6’ pole and flag like we had on my upper deck I did use 1/4” x3” lag screws I only had a stud on 1 side of the bracket so the other side I used 1-1/2 ‘ screws, this area gets strong wind so I put the bracket over the stud on the leading side.

To explain looking at the house the wind almost always blows from the left to right.
I put the bracket as far to the right to allow the left holes to line up with the stud.
This way most of the force from the wind is pulling on the strongest point of attachment.

If you have strong winds in both directions closer to a corner or window where there are normally multiple studs closer together may provide the support.


AC unit (turned on year round) leaves so much ice in the blower causing no cooling (pic included)

I'll let someone else take a stab at helping you fix your immediate problems, but I'll take a crack at the deeper issue. From your profile, I see that you live in New York. Assuming your mother does as well, your climate is wet, but only very hot for a few months out of the year. Running a central A/C unit year-round simply to dry the air out is a gross misuse of the equipment, and is probably making the house freezing cold for no reason, at high cost, and putting unnecessary wear-and-tear on the poor thing.

If your mother needs dry air to alleviate her asthma, have you considered using a dehumidifier to dry the air? It'll be a lot more inexpensive and cost-effective than running the A/C all the time. That must be costing a fortune.


What should I use for an interior door threshold if the clearance is only 1/2”?

You wouldn't cover the carpet in that scenario. You just use a termination molding with a vertical face against which carpet is tucked. Typically the top flange on these isn't more than 1/4" thick.
            ____________
          /    _________|_____________________
|||||||| |    ||
|||||||| |____||


What could be the source of dirt in attic

Subterranean termites build mud tunnels from dirt that they bring up from the ground. Tunnels going from crawlspace to attic is common. Most termite guys will destroy the tunnels after treating the area and not bother to clean up the dirt. Not saying this is the source (I'm not a termite inspector) but something to consider


Why does my dryer duct have such a long vertical portion?

Well first, the outlet being at-grade is a no-no for those pest reasons. They don't have to get up the vertical pipe to cause problems; a mouse or bird can nest in there and cause problems. They did it anyway because it was easier to run it down through the crawl space then up to the ceiling (where, if this is your garage, they'd then have to build a sealed bulkhead to prevent exhaust gases from your car getting into the vent line). If this is your situation I'd look at replacing the vent cap with a "critter-proof" model; there are several basic ideas, some more effective than others but all better than the single-flap standard model.

As for the vertical portion, they probably placed it high to allow for a stackable W/D. A higher placement also allows the flex vent more room to, well, flex, no matter where the dryer is. While it may seem logical to put the inlet to the vent directly behind the outlet from the dryer, doing this can actually be a pain, as the flex line then has to be fully compressed in line with the inlet and outlet, in order to avoid crushing it when the dryer is moved into place. It's really hard to get six feet of flex line to do that (and you need six feet of flex line so you can pull the dryer out enough to get behind it with the line still connected).

You can probably take out a couple feet of the rigid vent to lower the inlet. I'm not sure you'll really get more efficient venting, but it won't cause any more rodent problems than you'd already have with this setup.


Home improvement stores typically carry test kits.  I've found them right by water filters and water softeners. They usually are small paper strips that change color based on levels of hardness. The kit will also come with a legend to allow you to compare the strips.


Your first mistake was using the diamond pads. Part of the discoloration is stone dust being embedded in the concrete filler. You had a mold problem or staining from food/drinks being spilled. You should have started out with a non abrasive concrete / grout cleaner. You could have even used a mixture of beach and water. Try doing this and just work on the cement/grout filling. Once that's cleaned up use a buffing pad and polish on the affected stones.


What protects an installer from drilling a hole in joist and not hit anything?

If it is at all possible, you make sure you can see the other side before you drill.  In some areas fishing wires into an unopened space is considered concealed work and must be done by a master electrician.
That said, a few tricks I've seen used:
There are many types of electrical toner.  I don't know the name of the one you want for this, we just called it an in slab or in wall toner, but it looks like a metal detector and you can sense wires 6 or 8 inches deep in something.
For holes into the top of walls where something may be stapled to the underside of the stud, you can use a hole saw without a pilot bit (only pilot to get started) and drill only part way through then smash out the plug.
You can also use a skinny  volt ticker like the Fluke LVD1A taped to a stick to sense the bottom of a smaller hole before you drill through.
Depending on the geometry of where you want to check, a stud sensor with electrical sense has better depth than a volt ticker at low price.
You can get a cheap usb inspection camera for your laptop or phone and attach it to a wire to make a camera on a stick.  Drill a hole somewhere safer, put the camera in, take a look.


Is this legal? And should we use 2 by 8s?

What should the span between beams be when laying 2"x 4"s or 2"x 8s"?

If your question is only what should the floor joist spacing be then; if you go with 2"x 8" floor joist    16 "  on center (OC) will be sufficient.
I would not use 2"x 4"s.
If you use 2"x 6"s then i would go 12" OC.
If your question is how should i rebuild this then; I would rip it all out, Bolt rim joists to the concrete wall with anchor's and run the joist from wall to wall (left to right in the photo) hung on the rim joist with Simpson joist hangers and then re-do the plumbing.


How should kitchen units be fitted to accommodate walls not perpendicular?

This is what 1/4 round is for 10 degrees is larger than most I have delt with bit it will hide the gap almost all homes have some areas that are not perfectly square.


Breakers protect WIRE and #8 conductors allow you to use a 40A breaker in the Main panel to feed the sub-panel. That's your only limiting factor here. It makes no difference what the PANEL is rated for so long as it is more than adequate for a 40A circuit, which is is. So get off of that side track.

In the sub panel, you can put whatever else you want in there that is 40A or less. But if your NEMA 14-50 outlet has something plugged into it that is drawing 40A, and you use something else from that sub-panel that pulls any more, the breaker in the Main panel will trip to protect those conductors, so be aware of what you use in that garage.

The tricky part is that a 14-50 outlet is good for 50A, not 40 A, so if you needed that receptacle (i.e. a Tesla charger), ostensibly it means it likely could draw more than 40A which would be a problem for your circuit. If you really needed a 50A circuit, you needed #6 conductors all around.

Edit: Sorry, I was thinking building wire like NM, which is used from the 60C column, you said you have THHN in conduit, so it is good for 50A, not 40A. So you can use a 50A breaker in the Main panel.


Is there any advantage to using a weather resistant GFCI in a bathroom?

Probably no reason to use a WR outlet. The "WR" rating may not mean what you think it means. The primary difference between a WR outlet and a regular one is the WR one uses a special kind of plastic that does not get as brittle when cold and has better UV protection so it does not get damaged by direct sunlight. It does not provide any additional water resistance. If the outlet is going to be subject to direct water spray (either indoors or outdoors) it should be protected by a weatherproof outlet cover.

(It's possible a Tamper Resistant outlet would provide a small amount of protection against water since there are shutters that cover the slots, but that's certainly not what it's designed for. You may or may not want to install TR outlets, depending on whether it's required by code and/or you have kids.)


How can I eliminate moisture dripping from my ceilings?

The most likley cause of the moisture is too much humidity.

Some solutions:

A dehumidifier
Fans to vent/move air around (to outside)
Increased Insulation in the attic (to avoid a large temperature difference between the ceiling and the attic)

Basically the humidity needs to be lowered inside the house.

You can get a Hygrometer to measure the humidity to see where it is at.  If it is above 60% then its definately a bit humid.


Added a new 5th wire for my wi-fi thermostat, now where to connect it?

You simply have to connect the new wire you ran between the "C" terminal on your thermostat and the "C" terminal on the furnace board.

You can test with your multimeter, you'll get 24VAC between R and C terminals.

Judging from your photo you have an air conditioner (it will be connected to Y and C), and there is already something else on C -- perhaps a humdifier (likely two wires C+W?).

The only concern here is potentially the load on your transformer. You get maximum of 0.5A at 24VDC (written on the right side in your picture). You'll have to find the current draw of everything, and if the sum exceeds 0.5A, you could run into some troubles (voltage dropping, causing anything from random malfunctions, to everything not working, to burning out your transformer).


If you do not have the space to mount the unit with the required space above you void the warranty! You are purchasing a premium unit and mounting it two close to the ceiling will cause ANY future problems to be on your dime IF the installer will violate the space requirements (some will not).
Placing the unit tight to the bookshelf will block the output also. I would go with what they require because a future real problem may be on you that they would have covered if properly mounted.


Ceiling Fan update with Metal Sheathed Cables and Romex

Since you have access to the box from above a ceiling fan box would be a good and easy replacement.

The wires only look like they have metallic sheathed, they are not.

If you feel strongly about damage to the wire you can always replace it. As long as the insulation on the inner conductors is not damaged the wire should be fine.

Yes, the two kinds of wires can be used together.


What is the proper method to install a "close" metal pipe nipple?

Installing the close nipple is done by starting the nipple into the first fitting by hand. Then start the second fitting. Make sure that the suitable teflon pipe thread tape is installed on both ends of the close nipple. Then use an appropriate wrench on the second fitting to tighten the joints.

Note that the threads on a nipple like this should have a diameter taper on each end. This causes the fitting to get progressively tighter as each end is screwed into its mating part. When tightening the two joints simultaneously the two tapered joints will turn till one gets tighter than the other. At that point the looser one will then tighten up till it catches up and becomes similar tight to the other joint. Eventually you will achieve the necessary thread engagement with  each end of the nipple.


My Philips TV turns on only after I plug it out many times. How can I fix it?

Inside an LCD TV, there are effectively just a few major components:

LCD matrix
Backlight
Power supply
Backlight driver (aka, high voltage power supply)
Main board
Video board
T-Con board
Speakers
Buttons
IR Receiver

Some of these items may be combined with others (control board and video board might be the same) or not used (backlight driver usually only needed for CCFL backlights).

Let's work through that list and assess the probability of each component causing the problem you have described.

Your LCD matrix is probably fine. A failure here probably wouldn't stop the TV from otherwise powering on. A failed backlight probably wouldn't either.
A bad power supply might work enough to turn on the red light you mentioned in a comment, but fail to respond to a power-on command. A failed power supply is a likely candidate.
Your TV does not have a high voltage power supply.
The main board is responsible for receiving your power-on command and controlling the power-on sequence. A failed main board is also a likely candidate.
Your TV does not have a separate video board.
A failed T-Con board is not likely to cause your problem. And I don't think your TV has one.
There is a small chance that a shorted speaker is triggering a short-circuit protection mechanism, causing the TV to immediately power off. I would consider this unlikely.
When the TV does work, you state you are able to turn it on using the on-board buttons and the remote, and when it doesn't work neither of them work. Therefore we can rule out the button board and the IR received.

There is a small chance that if you open up the TV and remove the power supply board, you might be able to identify a failed component and replace it. More likely you will have to replace the entire board.


Difficulty in driving a nail through with a nail setter

Drill out the nail with a drill bit and fill. Use a bit that is larger than the actual nail size to make it easier.


What is a proper way to tape a 6” round hole from can light?

First smooth out those edges and make sure they're flat. No need to cut out squares and re-plug. Then use five or six equal lengths of paper tape to tape the area. I like to butt joint the sides of the tape and not overlap it. I also wouldn't use the mesh tape because if you're not careful you'll see the mesh imprint on the finished wall. Be prepared to do a lot of finishing touch up because ceiling flaws are easy to see.


Troubleshooting LED refresh rate or flicker

Well in the UK, the first of your videos is called strobing the second is flickering. My own (non clinical) tests show that dimmable light bulbs (even when not on dimmers) and both halogen and LED seem to do eiter flickering or strobing to varying degrees, some bulbs more so than others, even when on simple on off switches. I don't know if it's bad for you though, but I would rather not find out long term, so I have tested many bulbs dimmable and not and found a few bulbs which don't strobe or flicker at all, not even a small flicker, even at iphone slow motion record of 240. Unfortunately, they are all higher-end NON dimmable Led bulbs. Must be the technology used on dimmable bulbs that allow some movement within the bulb. I have not yet found even 1 dimmable bulbs of any shape or size or make that does not at least flicker to some degree (even on on/off switches) when viewed in slow motion record. Thats why I dont use any dimmers at home which is a shame but if you ever find a dimmable bulb that doesn't flicker, I would love to know :)


How can I repair and waterproof a large crack in my foundation wall?

If your question is simply "is it ok", sure, it's ok. It may not seal the leak, though, and it may crack again if your home experiences seasonal movement due to an inadequately deep foundation or other issues.

You should probably consult with a local expert to find a solution that's appropriate for your climate and soil, and not throw darts at the problem. An exterior patch along with a waterproof membrane might be cheaper, easier, and less expensive, for example.


Should I use caulk to fix cracking grout in a shower?

That should have never been grout, joints between walls and other objects should be caulked because movement in those joints will cause the cracking that you now see, and the cracking can lead to water getting behind the tile. This also goes for inside corners in a shower, and the joint between bottom of the wall and the floor or tub..


Can I split a 3 wire circuit into 2 separate 2 wire circuits?

As others have mentioned, this is a shared neutral configuration.  Technically, yes you can do it however I believe the current NEC only permits such circuits in a kitchen. The most common use of this is to have an outlet where both top and bottom plugs are on different circuits.

You are also required to have the circuit breakers tied together so if one trips, both are shut off.  The most important part of this configuration is that the two hot conductors come from different legs of your service so that they are out-of-phase from each other.  The result of this is that they balance out the neutral conductor; if you used hot from the same phase you could double the allowed current over your neutral conductor.


What type of filler to replace a gasket but not permanently?

Permatex markets a variety of gasket sealants, depending on exactly what you're sealing. Of particular note in this situation are the various High Tack branded ones which combine gasket and adhesive. It's more likely you'll find them in an automotive parts dealer than at the hardware store.


Mounting WLAN router, switch, 2 Raspberry Pis and a power strip

1/2" plywood would be fine.  If the hardware has keyhole mounting holes, I'd get 1/2" pan head screws for that.  Get whatever size would fit the keyhole.  Disclaimer: YMMV, IMHO there's no fire risk, despite all the hardware, there's very little power actually being drawn, so I wouldn't worry about that.

Command (brand) hooks are usually the go-to for attaching things to walls without damaging the surface, but you are probably above the limit for what they can hold.  A small picture hook would probably do, although would leave a small hole.


What are common reasons afci circuits won't work?

This almost always results from mixed of interconnected neutrals. If you have a connection between neutrals of different circuits, or the neutrals are switched, then the current through the GFCI circuitry is unbalanced, causing the trip.

The other thing to check is that you moved the neutral wires from the neutral bus to the neutral terminals of the breakers.

To debug this, turn off all of the breakers and disconnect all of the neutrals (mark them to keep track of where they go). Check for continuity between neutrals. If you find any, you’ll need to track down where they are connected.

If none are connected, turn on a load (e.g. light bulb) on each circuit. Go to each hot and find the neutral that shows some continuity. Make sure these are paired on a breaker.


How can I support the bottom of a long, open cabinet?

I like the open look but to tell the truth you will need some (probably 2 or more brackets) this method, or some decorative dowels that can lift the load.

I have done similar and ended up drilling the center of the dowel and using 1/4” all thread with washers and nuts above and below. to hide the all thread at the bottom I found some brass loops to screw on the bottom end. (Think ceiling toggle bolt but very high end).

The dowels still make the space appear open you could even use a small chunk of the same wood the box is made of 3/4” square x 12” and drill that out and use all thread.

I did try screwing directly into the dowel but with a load (cook books) the screws started pulling out. After adding the all thread it was strong but I needed to hide the nut (I only had counter sank the holes enough for the screw heads and did not want to weaken the area further so the nut and a little of the all thread were exposed, the loops worked out great, if you wanted to reduce clutter a small ball or other type of device could be screwed on to hide the nut and threads.


Take a look at a French cleat, it will help keep the ply level and supported and will allow you to
remove whenever you wanted provided you can lift the plywood off the back.

The two factors here, one are getting the cleat affixed to the ply and the entertainment back, ideally both
have enough depth for wood screws. The second is the gap between the ply and the entertainment center the cleat will create.


Can I install Slate Ledger stone panels over drywall?

I would be concerned about putting that much over all weight on drywall. Even though it may be supported by the floor. The facing on drywall is only paper. When the thinset is applied, the paper will get wet, which it will, even with coats of paint over it. Even if the paper stayed bonded to the gypsum core, that is all it is bonded to. Gypsum has no real strength, not for that kind of shear forces. And on top of that, it may have a chance if the drywall is glued to the studs, but if it isn't, the few screws or nails is all that is keeping all that weight from buckling the drywall and falling.

In my humble opinion, use 1/2" cement board.


Can I protect 3 branch circuits with a GFCI outlet?

This is easy -- pigtail all the black (hot) wires together except for the one that's actually hot, and do the same with the white (neutral) wires.  Then, connect the hot black/white to the corresponding LINE terminals on the GFCI, and the pigtail black/white to the matching LOAD terminals on the GFCI.  Finally, pigtail all the grounds together and connect them to the GFCI's ground screw.

(If you don't want the rest of the circuit GFCI protected, leave a comment or edit your question.)


Microwave oven is not working but display works well

"while moving it's door came out"
That's the key. A microwave oven is an extremely safe device as long as the door is closed when in use. It is an extremely dangerous device if it is used with the door open. In order to make absolutely certain that nobody will ever turn on a microwave oven with the door open, there are normally multiple interlocks or switches to make sure that it is closed before starting. These switches are NOT as obvious or as simple to override as, for example, the door-open-light-on switch for a refrigerator because the consequences are much more serious with a microwave oven.
A couple of likely possibilities:

When the door came off, some internal wiring connected to the door came out and when you put the door back on the oven the wiring was not reconnected.
A small hidden switch in the frame of the oven where the door closes was pulled/pushed out of place when the door came off and now when the door closes it doesn't trigger the switch correctly.

You may be able to figure this out by checking the schematic. What I do NOT recommend is trying to bypass the door switch because it only takes one accident to cause some serious damage.


Two switches on the same single hot wire

This is called a switch leg the white should be taped black or another hot conductor color.
Your red and black are the switched hots going to the lights.
You don’t have a neutral in your case so your dimmer can not require a neutral it is possible a dimmer that requires a ground will work if the ground is connected at the other end and back at the panel but most LED’s won’t work with an old school dimmer because they draw a little current through the light this causes LED’s to glow or flash but will be fine with incandescent lamps on a dimmer. That’s why I mentioned the possibility of a dimmer that uses the ground may be an option for LED’s.


Can I support a fiberglass tub with a layer of 1" thick foam board between a concrete subfloor and mortar base?

A typical bathtub holds around 40 gallons, which equates to 8 pints of water, and since a pints a pound the world around, that means 320 pounds of water+you in the tub plus whatever part of you is above the waterline.

If we estimate the surface area of the bottom of the tub at approximately 4' by 1.5' that's about 6 square feet or 864 square inches.

That means that at most the pounds per square inch on the bottom of the tub will be about .4 - and that's ignoring that part of the weight will be carried by the sides of the tub around to the rim.

Then there's the mortar.  1 cubic inch of mortar comes in at about .08 pounds and 3 of those vertically means .24 pounds bringing the total pounds per square inch on the foam, maximum, to about .64.

So the concern here is - will the foam take the weight - and the only way to find out is to determine if the foam is able to withstand pressure of .64 pounds per square inch without compressing.  And also - will the foam's strength deteriorate over time.

These are answers you'll have to find out from the manufacturer. (Although you can test it yourself - use weigh the head of a hammer resting on a scale while the handle rests off the scale and that is probably > 1 pound... then rest it on the foam)  But if the foam is rigid enough to take that kind of weight, you'll probably be ok.


How important is the scoop cut in a drop-in joint?

Notches in structural members such as floor joists cause stress risers that decrease the strength greater than the material removed. A scoop cut reduces the strength only by the removed material and no more. The scoop can be freehanded if it does not show, so it may be faster than carefully cutting a notch.

In constructions where the member is significantly stronger than necessary the scoop is not required and a square cut will yield a neater, tighter joint. Even though there is overlap, the goals and techniques of building construction and rough carpentry are often much different than cabinetry and fine carpentry.


Securing hose bib to uneven cinder block wall

So what I did took a couple of weekends and the acquisition of new tools and skills, but I figured it out to my satisfaction.

I did Steps 1 and 2 from my checklist above.  For the spacer, I build a 3x5" box out of 3/8" plywood and scribed the edges to match the uneven cinder block.  I used a rotary rasp bit on my drill to “carve” the box edges to my scribe lines.  It took a couple of tries to get it to fit decently, but in the end it pushed out the flat box face away from the cinder block and just under the siding.

I painted it with the same outdoor masonry paint that we used to paint the cinderblocks, and applied caulk along the edge.  Inside, I filled the gap between the block and the pipe with expanding spray foam.

Jack's answer is still a good one.  I just preferred not to punch a new hole in the wall.


Does VOC-free paint require VOC-free undercoat?

VOC solvents are used in paints because they are volatile; they will readily evaporate at room temperature.  When someone wants low-VOC paint, it means that they don't want (for health or environmental reasons) to release VOCs as the paint dries.  Since the undercoat would need to dry before the finish coat is applied, using an undercoat that is not low-VOC would defeat the purpose.


How would I replace 4 posts and beam holding my covered patio with 2 posts?

The vertical posts are probably almost strong enough for only two supports as is.  Replacing those with steel is not necessarily needed.

The challenge is the strength of the horizontal span with reduced supports.  If left as wood, it will have to be fortified by a factor of more than two.  Of course, the added weight of that much more beam means the factor must be increased a little more.

Assuming #1 northern Doug-fir for a span holding roofing only which is 20 lbs/sq ft live load plus 10 lbs/sq ft dead load and assuming that the current spans were engineered at 150%, then increasing the current 10-11 ft spans to 30 feet would require replacing the pair of 2x6s with a pair of 2x12s on edge, firmly tied together.

I tried to figure out an equivalent steel beam, but I am out of my experience.  The first result says that a 4x4.5 inch beam is more than twice what is needed.  Searching for rough pricing for such beams is surprisingly challenging.


The proper way is:

Put  the rubber washer on the bolt
Put the tank on the toilet base
Put bolt through tank and toilet base
Put metal washer on bolt and then screw on nut
Tighten accordingly


wire on the floor. What is it likely was used for?

It appears that there is a drain for the washing machine coming out of the wall, and the drier vent is right next to it, so I think it is more likely that it went to a washing machine. Since there is no plug on the wire, it may have been hardwired.

Try to trace the wire back to the panel to see if anyone labeled it. Also, make sure that the circuit is dead before touching it.


Why does my basement smell like my drop-ceiling tiles?

Just as new homes and new cars smell new for years, your basement will smell new until enough activity and ventilation have occurred. I lined part of my basement workshop with OSB two years ago and I still smell it when I walk down there.

I suggest time and air. Worst-case scenario you replace the tiles, but I doubt it'll come to that.


How much continuous power can a 30 A 240 V outlet handle?

Use the 80% rule for continuous loads (because the breaker will, even if you don't)

While 210.22 would seem to indicate that you have the full 30A available to you:

  210.22 Permissible Loads, Individual Branch Circuits.
  An individual branch circuit shall be permitted to supply
  any load for which it is rated, but in no case shall the load
  exceed the branch-circuit ampere rating.

you have to consider that the breaker may have other ideas, as stated in 210.20(A):

  (A) Continuous and Noncontinuous Loads. Where a
  branch circuit supplies continuous loads or any combination of continuous and noncontinuous loads, the rating of
  the overcurrent device shall not be less than the noncontinuous load plus 125 percent of the continuous load.

  Exception: Where the assembly, including the overcurrent
  devices protecting the branch circuit(s), is listed for operation at 100 percent of its rating, the ampere rating of the
  overcurrent device shall be permitted to be not less than
  the sum of the continuous load plus the noncontinuous load.

The reason why is because garden-variety breakers made to UL 489 (and their counterparts in fuse-land) will eventually trip (or blow) if you run 100% of their rated current through them for hours on end.  While there is such a thing as a 100%-rated breaker, they are typically only found in industrial work.

Furthermore, the branch circuit wiring needs an 80% derate for continuous loads as well, as per 210.19(A)(1):

  (1) General. Branch-circuit conductors shall have an ampacity not less than the maximum load to be served. Conductors shall be sized to carry not less than the larger of
  210.19(A)(1)(a) or (b).

  (a) Where a branch circuit supplies continuous loads
  or any combination of continuous and noncontinuous loads,
  the minimum branch-circuit conductor size shall have an
  allowable ampacity not less than the noncontinuous load
  plus 125 percent of the continuous load.

  (b) The minimum branch-circuit conductor size shall
  have an allowable ampacity not less than the maximum
  load to be served after the application of any adjustment or
  correction factors.

  Exception: If the assembly, including the overcurrent devices protecting the branch circuit(s), is listed for operation
  at 100 percent of its rating, the allowable ampacity of the
  branch-circuit conductors shall be permitted to be not less
  than the sum of the continuous load plus the noncontinuous
  load.

So, you're limited to 5760W for an on-all-the-time (or at least longer than a few hours at a time) load.  Non-continuous loads (say a large well pump motor), though, can pull the full 7200W from the circuit as the duty cycle of the load provides adequate time for things to cool off between runs.


What could cause my light and TV to turn off, then back on?

You might be at risk of a house fire, and I believe you should call an electrician to come out and diagnose the problem, unless you have the diagnostic skills yourself. Maybe it's something that would go on for years without causing a fire. But maybe not, and either way it's annoying or (much) worse.

You could have a broken wire inside a wall, or in a junction box. This can happen if NM cable is pulled over-enthusiastically when there's a kink in it, especially if it's #14 wire.  Or it could be a bad connection in a junction box. You could even have a bad connection inside your service panel, or a bad breaker. I assume both the TV and the light are on the same circuit, since they seem to be the only things affected?

Electrical connections should be tight, no wiggling, with plenty of pressure and plenty of metal in contact.

A bad connection would cause heat (potentially a lot of it). The heat would cause thermal expansion, which might be breaking the circuit by physically moving bits of metal apart. Then as it cools back down, the parts separated by the thermal expansion touch again and the light and TV come back on. But the connection is bad, more heat, thermal expansion, repeat. If this is what's going on, you are potentially at risk of a fire, and you should call an electrician.

Another kind of weird (very unlikely) possibility is that the TV is somehow wired through the light fixtures. Does the TV come on at all if the light switch is off, or does the light have to be on for the TV to work at all? I only ask because you explicitly mentioned turning the light on before turning the TV on. Some light fixtures are designed with thermal protection and shut off if they overheat. If the light is shutting off because it got too hot, and the TV is wired through the light fixture somehow (serially? Or using a neutral that gets switched off?), the TV would go off and come back on with the light. As I said, though, this is unlikely and you almost definitely have a bad connection somewhere, which is a fire in the making.

Regardless, I really think it's time to call an electrician. If it's something that wouldn't cause a fire, you get it fixed and you're out a few bucks. If it's a fire hazard, then you will have potentially saved lives.


How do I porperly identify which sensor wires are which for my pre-wired garage door openers?

Tracers tend to emit signals that migrate to nearby wires, especially flat cables like doorbell wire.
set the tone injector to continuity test mode and see which cable makes it light up when you connect the wires together.


How to Lower the Ouptut of Oversized Furnace

If partially closing a single supply vent caused your high limit to trip you probably have an restriction problem.

I would recommend investigating a bypass damper with a return and supply temp. sensor.  These devices are typically just a part of a whole house zoning system, but can be used to easily resolve supply air restrictions in situations where modifying existing duct runs is not practical.  Essentially, the bypass damper dumps excess air back in to the return.  The two sensors ensure that you don't exceed safe operating temperatures without reaching the max temp of the high limit in the winter or freezing the system up in the summer.  The only brand I have used EWC Controls which work just fine, but there are other brands available.

footnote: reducing the static pressure of your system will reduce energy usage.


How can I protect this plumbing in an exterior wall from freezing?

I've had this problem and it gets passed up in inspection a lot of the time.  I would build a separate box around these pipes, insulate and even use heat tape.  Plumbing on an outside wall like this will freeze!  Even a concrete outside wall 8" thick.  Put the heat tape on a separate line so that you decide to turn it on when necessary.  Insulation could be fiber glass, blown in insulation or even shredded newspaper.  Newspaper is great insulation.  I'd use something that is fire retardant for insulation if you use electrical tape.

How long ago was this installed?  In Washington State, there is 12 years for discovery and getting something fixed by the general contractor no cost to you.  There are ways for contractors to get out of this clause in Washington States laws but few understand the laws, even lawyers are clueless.

Check out the laws in your state.  If you did not sign a contract that says, "Indiana's State law for warranty is superseded by this contract declaring a one year warranty to include labor and material..." then that contractor is obliged and has to abide by the warranty law in your state.  Worth checking out.  You have to hire a licensed plumber to fix this, you should not do it yourself because it might VOID the warranty protecting you.

I would hire a free lancing home inspector.  Very reasonable costs!  They work for you!  Not the city or county.


You want something like this.

This is a rubber connector which goes in the top of the 110mm pipe, and the 40mm pipe slides in to it.

Yes, the connection needs to be sealed to seal off smells.  If the 110mm pipe gets blocked (unlikely, because any blockages are much more likely to form in the 40mm pipe), you can easily disassemble it.

Note: The link is to Screwfix because that was the first result I found.  I wouldn't actually buy from Screwfix.


What is this unit attached to my house, and what do I replace it with?

That's telephone.  It's not a transformer.  It's a terminal block.

Call up the phone company and ask them to have someone come out and show you where your point of demarcation is.  That's where the wires stop being their responsibility and start being your responsibility (unless you have an in-house service plan as part of your bill).  It looks like an obsolete one of those.  If so, you can't mess with "their" half of it (the side going off to the pole).

If it is downstream of your point of demarcation, you can do as you please, at peril of breaking your landline phone service. (and Internet if it comes via phone line).