In the general sense, a physical border like tile cap or chair rail between two building materials is usually aesthetic, provided that the materials were installed properly. The one exception to this is in the case of a material with significant expansion potential with changes in climate (namely wood); in that case, a border can hide the necessary expansion joint. While that may apply here, the proper solution to allow for expansion is a bead of silicone caulk between the different materials.

Frankly, this job looks very poorly done, and I would question exactly how they got a flush surface. My guess is that they installed backer up to a certain point, tiled over the backer board (with or without an underlayment) and then installed gypsum drywall above that to create the flush surface (concrete backer + tile ~= one layer of drywall in thickness). The problem is that the grout of the last course (which is porous and not waterproof) is right up against drywall (or plaster, joint compound, or other porous non-waterproof building material). The end result will be that the grout will absorb water and wick it upwards to the drywall, which will absorb it and disintegrate. Generally speaking, two porous materials should never contact each other when moisture is a concern; the material that can handle moisture permeation (concrete, grout, earth) will wick it into the material that cannot (wood, drywall, plaster) and degrade it over time.

Anyway, what I would do in this case, if you wanted to try to save it, is remove the grout between the tile and drywall wherever it exists, and then install a T-border of some impervious substance as a barrier between the two materials, bedded in an adhesive caulk. The T-border will help prevent moisture transfer between tile and drywall, and provide a clean line between the two materials.

That's not an ideal solution, and honestly, if I were you and had the money to tear it all down and start over from the studs, it would give me the peace of mind that everything had been done properly. A couple of pictures give the impression that the previous homeowners didn't finish their reno, so there may be very little in it if you just started over. I also see inconsistencies in tile height, alignment, fit/finish, etc that tell me the installer didn't know or didn't care how to do it right, which means there could be serious underlying issues that could bite you. But, money's always an issue, and if you don't know how to DIY it properly and can't afford to hire the job out then I would tell you to try to make the best of what's there.


I've dealt with this recently with two shower/tubs.
I'm going to assume that you mean a combo and just a shower because those (at least in my experience) go straight down.
For me, it was really hard to tell which way the drain went at the bottom, but it went straight back under the tub. Please don't take this to mean that yours necessarily does.
For the first one, I put a snake down and was able to get quite a bit of hair out. The snake ended up getting stuck on the way out and I deformed it some.
With the second, I just put some lye down the drain. This isn't really ideal especially if you have a septic field, but is fast and easy.


You don't want an SDS plus chuck, that drill is going to be mostly for drilling masonry.  You could get an adapter to use regular bits with the SDS chuck but it's not what you really want.

There are drills with a regular three-jaw chuck that have a hammer setting for masonry, they aren't as good as the SDS chuck drills in masonry but more than adequate for general DIY use.

I have a Bosch that's been great, but if you like Metabo, I think these are under Impact Drills on the Metabo site:

https://www.metabo.com/com/en/machines/drilling-screwing-chiselling-stirring/impact-drills/

edit:  the SBE 900 IMPULS (600865590) IMPACT DRILL actually looks super nice, it has the 43mm chuck you want, apparently its set up to be a good driver as well as drill / hammer drill - that looks pretty versatile, I wonder if there's a US version...


2 different sets of downlights off the same switch. How to wire?

Ecnerwal make an excellent statement; doesn't matter.

I've got 25 years with the power company designing underground systems for high rise buildings, residential subdivisions and downtown areas. We hate radial feeds because if you have a problem, everyone's out. So I'd be running both sets to the switch. If something goes wrong with a section, you can disconnect that section from the switch and power up the other set so you have lights to fix the problem. (I know, I'm being ridiculous).


How can I secure a table that is hanging off the wall via four screws (2 on each side) from slipping away?

The 4 screws you installed will hold the desktop to those metal supports. The screws should be long enough to pentetrate at least 3/4 in.
The real issue is how are you mounting/attaching the support to the wall.  The metal support should be mounted on the wall first at the height you want snd leveled.  You need to located where the studs are behind the drywall.  Studs are normally 16" on center. So find the two studs, 48 in. apart.  Use 5/16- 2 1/2" long lag bolts to screw the support to the wall.  After the support are installed, place desktop on support and rescrew the desktop to the support.  Odds are that you will have to s crew in at new holes.  Not the one you are using now.


Why does my toilet pause and bubble when flushed?

Probably a clogged vent. Take a garden hose up on the roof and run it into the vent pipe. The water should drain immediately. If it overflows the vent pipe you have a clog. Yu can try to clear it by sending a plumbing rod down the vent pipe. Could be leaves, sticks and stuff


If I'm replacing a range with an oven and cooktop, do I have to change the breaker?

This isn't just an adding job

Your assumption that your oven & cooktop combination requires a 70A breaker is actually incorrect -- this is due to the 220.55 demand factors in the NEC, as it's pretty implausible that the oven will be going at full broil and all four cooktop elements will be on full blast all day long on other than very rare occasions.  (That, and neither of your appliances require a dedicated branch circuit in their installation instructions.)

Applying the logic of table 220.55, note 4:

  Branch-Circuit Load. It shall be permissible to calculate the branch-circuit load for one range in accordance with Table 220.55. The branch-
  circuit load for one wall-mounted oven or one counter-mounted cooking unit shall be the nameplate rating of the appliance. The branch-circuit load
  for a counter-mounted cooking unit and not more than two wall-mounted ovens. all supplied from a single branch circuit and located in the same
  room, shall be calculated by adding the nameplate rating of the individual appliances and treating this total as equivalent to one range.

to our circuit gets us a total unfactored load of 14.625kW.  Since this is over 12kW, we must then apply 220.55 note 1 to the 8kW column C value for a single range to get the factored load:

  Over 12 kW through 27 kW ranges all of same rating. For ranges individually rated more than 12 kW but not more than 27 kW, the maximum
  demand in Column C shall be increased 5 percent for each additional kilowatt of rating or major fraction thereof by which the rating of individual ranges exceeds 12 kW.

Applying this logic gives us a 15% increase in demand, or 8*1.15 = 9.2kW, which is well within the capacity of a 60A branch circuit!  (In fact, you could run this combo off of a 50A branch circuit if you so chose.)  Given that the use of 220.55 factoring for range circuit sizing is expressly permitted by the NEC in 422.10(A), paragraph 4:

  Branch circuits and branch-circuit conductors for
  household ranges and cooking appliances shall be permitted to be in accordance with Table 220.55 and shall be sized in accordance with 210.19(A)(3).

we can safely say that you don't need to change your breakers here, as the factored load is considered the "maximum load served" for the purposes of 210.19(A)(3).


Should I block off the soffit vents in the vicinity of my bathroom exhaust vent which is in the soffit?

I think you've answered your own question, you've got the best compromise if you MUST go through the soffit.

Any reason to not do a roof vent?  Roof vent,  it has a backdraft damper and a bird screen


No. If the wall is painted it is essentially already primed.


How would I wire a motion sensor to a fluorescent light?

I found a few different models of the Defiant sensor.  It looks like they all contain an electronic switch, with some controls like timing and sensitivity.

Of the models I found, some say they only work with incandescent bulbs, and some with incandescent or LED, but none claimed to be compatible with fluorescents.  One of the models that claimed to work with LED bulbs had customer feedback complaining about it not working with LED bulbs. So if you use it with fluorescents, be prepared to buy a replacement ballast if it works at all.

That said, the wiring would be as follows:

White is neutral and gets connected in common with the white leads of the feed and the light.  The feed would be a wire running back to the breaker panel.  If the white is already connected to the feed, just add the white fixture wire to it.
The models I saw had a bare or green wire, which is the ground wire and gets connected in common with the ground wire of the feed and the ground wire of the fixture.  My understanding is that if your sensor does not have a ground wire, it won't work with a fluorescent fixture (not 100% sure that is universal, or even what role it plays with the ballast, but I'll pass on that nugget for what it's worth).
Black is power into the sensor and is connected to the black wire of the feed.
Red is the power output (hot) from the sensor and gets connected to the black wire of the fixture.

If you find a similar sensor on the Home Depot web site, you can download the installation manual there.  It covers not only the wiring, but how to adjust and use the controls.


As the comments suggest, buy a pair of physical proximity switches, mount one for each door, and wire them in parallel. That way, either door, or both, will turn the light on when you open it.

Sample item:
door switch


Four family home with community washers and dryers

Since this is a common facility for your tenants, it should be installed in such a way that neither tenant is paying for the gas or electricity required for the washer.

If there is no common hot water heater in the building, then you should do the following:

Have an additional electric meter installed to supply electricity to the common areas of the building. Depending on local regulations and the size of the building, this may need to be a commercial meter.
If you want to use gas for the hot water and dryers, have an additional gas meter installed.
In order to supply hot water to the washers, you may want to investigate tankless water heaters which take up significantly less space than a tank. A small 100,000 BTU heater like this one can easily supply several washing machines.

An alternative route is to go all electric. Install a common electric meter as above, but use an electric on-demand water heater and electric dryers. Depending on your local utility costs this may end up being a lot more expensive than gas, though.


Modifying bottom chord of roof truss to accomodate new AC

Absolutely not. You CANNOT cut a truss in this way. They are not engineered with a huge amount of wiggle room. You risk having your roof collapse. The saner solution would be to lower the platform that the unit sits on to create some more room.


Need Wiring diagram to Help Rewiring a Bedroom and Bathroom to prepare for smart home system

Bathrooms

Bathroom fixed loads like lighting and fan can be served by any convenient circuit.

With the bathroom receptacles, you have two choices.

Many things, one bathroom:  The circuit serving receptacles in one bathroom can only serve other loads (fixed loads, lights, fan) in that same bathroom.  or...
Many bathrooms, only receptacles:  A circuit may serve receptacles in any number of bathrooms, but it can serve only receptacles and only in bathrooms.

You can go either way.

Switched receptacles

When having split receptacles (one unswitched, one switched)... the usual way that will be most understandable by "the next guy", and keep box fill sane, is to do switched receptacles is off the same circuit that powers the unswitched receptacles.  So in that case, you connect 12/3 between the two split receptacles, and from one split receptacle to the switch. Remember, you need to carry /3 to a switch loop because you must bring neutral in a switch loop.  You cannot use neutral from the other circuit!!!

Because you will have two different circuits in the same box, you must be very careful not to mix them.  You might even consider putting this switch in a different junction box, to remove all risk of confusion.

Having made the /3 connections between the two receptacles and the switch, you now can supply power in any of these locations - or really, anywhere else in the circuit.  Since I would be worried quite a lot about box fill in switch #1, I would consider feeding power into the receptacle circuit at the near receptacle.

Off the far receptacle (or anywhere in the circuit), you then continue with 12/2 cable carrying always-hot and neutral to other outlets.

The second way to do it is to put these switched sockets on the lighting circuit.  In that case, the switch box would be all one circuit and that would ease box fill there.  But now you are running two complete circuits to the switched/split receptacles, although you can use /2 cable.  You will need to break off both the hot and neutral tabs and take care to keep separation of circuits.  Which will make box fill worse at the receptacles.

Closet lamp #4

Given the proximity of closet lamp #4 to a receptacle location, consider powering closet lamp #4 off the receptacle circuit instead of the lighting circuit. This will need #12 wire because ALL wiring in a 20A circuit must be #12, no exceptions.  It is totally legal to do this, it's just not recommended to put lighting on receptacle circuits generally, because if you overload a socket, the breaker trip will plunge you into darkness.  That's not a big issue on a single closet.

By the way, no receptacles allowed in closets, and lamps can't be where clothing can touch them.

Box fill

Switches 1 and 3 are going to have a rather significant box-fill problem. I believe we discussed this six months ago on the three-fan circuit.  Be careful selecting your boxes so they are large enough, I'm fond of 4-11/16 square steel boxes and either 1-gang or 2-gang mud rings.


Does it smell like sewer gas?

If so, the sink trap is probably incorrectly installed, or more likely, the drain on an adjacent sink or dishwasher isn't properly vented.

A "vent" is a portion of drain tube that lets air into the pipe to replace the water flowing downward.  If there is no easy way to draw the air into the pipe (usually the vent just goes up to the roof and draws air from outside) then the water from other nearby traps can be suctioned down the drain as well.  Without water in trap, sewer gas is free to come up the drain and make you want to move to a condo.

To check the problem, run the dishwasher or wait until the stink appears.  Then get under the sink (with a bucket!) and take off the trap for the sink that smells.  This can usually be done without tools since it's usually a threaded plastic pipe.  Check that the trap is full.

If it's completely full than all this advice is moot: listen to some other commenter.

If it's not full, then the best thing to do is to fix the drain properly.  If that's too difficult or too expensive, you can install a "cheater valve" right before the trap.  They're officially called "air admittance valves" but nobody will know what you mean if you say that. :) They are one-way air valves that make it easier for an improperly vented drain to draw air through THEM rather than sucking out the water from the trap.  They're often used in island sinks where it's impossible to get a proper vent.

(source: homerepairforum.com)


How do I know what size grounding conductor is required?

If you are in the US, you'll likely follow National Electrical Code (NEC).
Lets start with some definitions.
NEC 2008

Bonding Jumper, Main. The connection between the grounded circuit conductor and the equipment grounding conductor at the service.
Grounding Conductor. A conductor used to connect equipment or the grounded circuit of a wiring system to a grounding electrode or
electrodes.
Grounding Conductor, Equipment (EGC). The conductive path installed to connect normally non–current carrying metal parts of
equipment together and to the system grounded conductor or to the
grounding electrode conductor, or both.
Grounding Electrode. A conducting object through which a direct connection to earth is established.
Grounding Electrode Conductor. A conductor used to connect the system grounded conductor or the equipment to a grounding electrode or
to a point on the grounding electrode system.

and a picture to help make things a bit more clear.

The size of the Main Bonding Jumper, Grounding Electrode Conductor, and Grounded Electrode is defined by table 250.66

The size of Equipment Grounding Conductors (the ones that run from the Ground bus bar out with each circuit), is defined by table 250.122.


Upstairs room too hot - can I install a room-to-room fan to blow hot air back into the high-ceiling living room?

It sounds like the living room is a very tall space.  It is normal for there to be significant thermal separation in such a tall room, befause heat wants to go up.  Tall rooms are a cultural indicator of wealth, which is one reason people like them; however the "wealth" part is that they cost more to heat.

It can help to have some sort of fan stirring the air.   It does not need to be a breezy blasty fan, who wants that in the winter, right?  It just needs to stir the air enough to prevent stagnation.  We have a 34,000 square foot 30' ceiling building with 3 fans stirring the air, it doesn't take a lot and you don't really feel them.

As for balancing the vents, you don't need to hire a guy to work the little knob that closes the vent upstairs. You can do that yourself and just use trial/error - every time, bump it less distance than you did before, eventually you will settle on balanced.  If your vent does not have a knob, get one that does.

Brace yourself for this: the vent setting that works in winter won't work in summer when the A/C is running.  You'll have to change it, probably opening upstairs 100% and partially closing downstairs vents.


Is it possible to convert an octagonal electrical box so that it can house 2 Duplex outlets without changing the shape of the box?

This product by Hubbell is about the only thing I can think of that will provide the equivalent of a two-gang duplex (quad) receptacle on an octagon box.

http://ecatalog.hubbell-wiring.com/press/pdfs/H4416R.pdf

Amazon.com even has them: http://www.amazon.com/Hubbell-HBL415BK-4-Plex-Receptacle-5-15R/dp/B00NGPR9MI/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1440803585&sr=8-15&keywords=hubbell+4-plex


Can I replace this receptacle that has four wires connected to it?

There should be no problem doing what you want.
One set of conductors brings power from an upstream device or outlet, while the other takes power to a downstream device or outlet. The two black conductors are electrically bonded through the receptacle, as are the two white conductors.  You'll notice that the bonding tab on the side of the receptacle is still in place, which means that the two receptacles are connected together.

Replacing with a similar receptacle
If you're simply replacing the existing receptacle, with an identical (or similar) receptacle of a different color.  Simply connect the new receptacle exactly as the original is connected.

Disconnect the power by switching off the breaker, or removing the fuse.
Connect the bare grounding conductor to the green grounding screw terminal.
Connect the two white conductors to the silver colored screw terminals (one per terminal).
Connect the two black conductors to the brass colored screw terminals (one per terminal).

NOTE: When terminating conductors at a screw terminal, always wrap the conductor in a clockwise direction.  This will cause the conductor to be pulled in tight, when the screw is tightened down.

Installing a new fancy device without screw terminals
I'm not sure what conductor combinations the supplied twist-on wire connectors are rated for, so I'm going to assume they're only rated for 2 #14 conductors (check the documentation). So before you start, you'll want to pick up a couple Ideal yellow twist-on wire connectors.

Disconnect the power by switching off the breaker, or removing the fuse.
Connect the bare grounding conductor from the circuit, to the green grounding conductor from the device using one of the supplied twist-on wire connectors.
Connect all the white conductors using a yellow twist-on wire connector.
Connect all the black conductors using a yellow twist-on wire connector.

Additional Information:

If this was a ground-fault circuit interruption (GFCI) receptacle (which it is not), the procedure would be different.
If this was a split receptacle (half switched, or both halves supplied by different circuits) (which it is not), the procedure would also be different.


The best solution is to get more of the same material and install it just like you did for the rest of the grout. This will keep you happy in the following years as you know you did the right thing.

Now it may be possible to patch this spot up with some sink sealer (bathroom tub / sink sealer such as DAP brand) but I can guess that it will look like a hack and in future you will always look at it and know you could have done better.

The other thing to consider is that a small batch of the grout material is not likely going to cost a whole lot more than having to purchase some type of sealer material. It may even be possible that you can even find a grout repair kit that has the material in a small bag instead of a whole wheel barrow load type of bag.


How do I seal a 4+ mm gap between skirting board and slate tiles?

I would use foam backer rod in the gaps, put down masking tape on the slate (and perhaps above the joint, on the skirting and fill with the polyfila or perhaps a colour matched latex based caulk.

Pull the masking tape right after smoothing the joint down with a finger.


Is there a problem installing a floodlight upsidedown?

There isn't a problem mounting those Chinese jobs upside down -- per se.   For LEDs, orientation is not a big issue; it helps if the heat sink (if any) can have good convection but that can happen in several orientations.

Of course that depends on their build quality, which can vary dramatically amongst brands/makes in that general category.  In that case, shelter makes more of a difference than orientation.   I am rather fond of mounting LED lights of that type inside the diffuser of old 100-175W discharge lights, where you can barely tell they're not a discharge light.


What framing do I need to build a garage with 13 ft walls to store a boat?

The most important question here is, 'do you have a building plan?" Building a structure with 13 to 14 foot walls and a 12 foot door is quite a reach for an inexperienced DIYer. You should start by selecting a set of building plans at your local lumber yard or maybe online. There are a lot more considerations than what size studs you should be using. You are going to need a foundation detail to support the added weight of this large building.  The wall details will most likely be 2X6, fire breaks, and 1/2" to 5/8" sheathing, ground built then lifted into place. Your design may use roof trusses or rafters with collar ties, and substantial posts and headers for a 12 foot door.

A building of this size is most definitely going to require a building permit. To get this permit, they will need to see your blueprints or plans.

With all that said, I personally would not build 14 foot walls with 2X4's. I would use 2X6's 16"OC, horizontal stiffeners 48" OC, 5/8 CDX sheithing, double 2X6 plates(upper & lower) and an engineered truss roof. Door headers minimum of 4X12 @ 12 feet, preferably a LAM.


What is the max number of outlets on a GFCI circuit?

There's no limit.  A standard GFCI will protect up to 20 amps, drawn from any combination of receptacles, either the built-in one or any number of additional ones connected to its load terminals.  If you're trying to add GFCI protection to an existing circuit, you needn't worry about how many outlets are downstream on the 'load' side, assuming things are correctly wired presently.

Now, if you're installing new circuits, from a practical standpoint, you might want to keep the number of outlets per circuit reasonably low, and instead run separate circuits (with their own GFCIs) for additional outlets, not because the GFCI couldn't handle more, but because you might want to use more than 15-20A at a time in a given location.


This is normal. Your indoor air is humid, so when it reaches a cold surface (your window glass) condensation appears. The heavy curtain facilitates this by reducing air circulation across your window, which blocks heat and air flow around the window, but does not seal out humidity. The window gets cooler, and water condenses on it.

When you open your curtain, the window gets warmed up from your room air so some of the condensation evaporates. This probably happens when you wake up, so you're also opening up other doors and windows, moving air around the house, and helping the humidity levels even out.

As long as you're regularly relieving the humidity build up and it isn't dripping (which can cause rot, e.g. on a wooden window frame) this shouldn't be a problem.


A quick google search should give you a plethora of options.  There are putty sheets, that can be molded around the outside of the box and wires. Foam boxes that can be installed around the box. There are thin plastic boxes, which are designed to tie into a vapor barrier system. Etcetera, etcetera


What could cause the furnace blower to come on constantly and no fire in gas burner?

You have a bad high limit switch, or the furnace is overheated. The high limit switch is in place to make sure the furnace doesn't heat up to the point that it damages itself, or anything around it. If the furnace gets too hot, the limit switch opens. When the switch opens the burners turn off, but the blower continues to run in an attempt to clear the heat. Once the heat is removed, the limit switch should reset (if it's an automatic reset type). In the case of a bad switch, it never resets, so the burners never come on.

Limit switches can go bad with age, but more often than not fail due to overuse. Dirty filters, blocked return ducts, closed registers, really anything that restricts air flow through the system can cause the furnace to overheat. If this happens too often, the limit switch will die prematurely.

Have a local licensed HVAC technician install a new limit switch.


Yes. That's what pigtails are for. No problem at all.

Incoming (from panel) wires -> LINE side of GFCI
Outgoing wires - short pigtails (colors matching the outgoing wires, normally black & white) -> LOAD side of GFCI
On the other end of each pigtail, wire nut the two matching wires to the other locations.

All grounds (both sides) are connected together.


Why does my garage consumer unit buzz when the kettle is on?

Buzzing is a clue that there is a bad connection. This could be a bad breaker contact. On this side of the pond I have had top name brand breakers do this. My solution at least short term is turn that breaker on and off 10+ times with nothing plugged in. This seats the hammers in the breaker displacing the crud that was causing the problem. If the buzzing quits that solved the problem for now. I say solved the problem for now because if the arcing was severe it may return when this circuit is heavily loaded and then it's time to replace the breaker. It could be a loose wire lug also but I have found the breaker to be the cause most often even in large 3 phase systems the on off seats the hammers and things may be normal.


If the private road is owned/maintained by an "association" (some sort of formal group ownership arrangement as is often the case for private roads serving more than one person/house) you should bug the association since they probably all need to be cleaned, and you may already be paying a maintenance fee that should cover such things.

If it's yours and yours alone, you should ask your builder for details of what they did, and undertake to maintain it yourself or hire someone to maintain it for you, on a regular schedule. Our town crew seems to use a giant vacuum truck to suck the crud out, but there are likely several approaches that don't involve a giant vacuum truck, such as a can on the end of a stick.

Since it's close to the house, a wet/dry shop vacuum might help.

Best bet on opening - Hook the grate and pull up - looks to me like it's hinged (so that if left open and traffic came in the marked direction it would slam shut, rather than try to act as a traffic barrier and damage itself and cars.) If so, hooking near the bottom of the picture would be easiest. Otherwise, the middle is always a good bet, if not the easiest.


How do I know if my engineered hardwood is glued down?

There are a few ways to check this out. Like Michael stated above, a register is a good place to start. You can also look for a short piece of base board and remove it and check to see if the floor lifts up. Check any thresholds or transition pieces because many snap into a track and can be easily removed.


If the areas are not going to be stepped on, go on over it, it will only be a bit of thinset going in there, and the tile will span it with no issues.


The issues you mentioned are typical problems for a tankless system that hasn't gotten much attention for a few years. Descaling the heat exchanger and replacing a broken mixing valve are fairly simple tasks and can be done in maybe 3 hours by a decent plumber.

Condensing boilers are great and probably much more efficient than your current system. It's worth looking at your usage and figuring out how many years it would take to pay off an upgrade, especially if there are incentives available. But if there are no problems other than the ones you've mentioned, it's unlikely the cost to repair those would justify replacing the boiler on its own. On the other hand, if you're going to own your home for several more years and the efficiency improvement will pay for itself in that time, perhaps you'd prefer to take that leap now and skip the repairs on your current system.


What is the name of this plug/socket combo from a rangehood?

Molex is one of the leading brand names for these connectors, there are several different sizes of pins commonly used Based on the amperage.
Some manufactures use different shaped pin and sleeve connectors
There are tools to slide in and release the connectors so the body can be repinned.
The commercial tools are expensive but I have had mine over 20 years.
You can get parts online for a few $  molex pins , extraction tools, kits all available on amazon prime. There are also crimp tools (look a lot like wire strippers with a small pair of crimp Jaws again look up molex crimper.


How can I make my own fabric replacement slats for my blinds?

Something like Craft Plastic would probably do the trick.

You can generally find Craft Plastic at arts and craft stores - its used commonly in scrap-booking.

A bit of an unusual item for a DIY question but in this case, appropriate, I think.


White wire connected to two black wires and ceiling fan?

Fans with remotes are usually meant to be wired up to an always hot wire and a neutral. So you need to take the black wire from your fan remote unit and connect it to the two black and one white wire group. Take the white wire from your remote unit and connect it to the two white wires out of the ceiling. Then cap the single black wire out of the ceiling which is probably a switched hot from a wall switch.
If you want to utilize the wall switch, connect the black wire from your remote unit to the single black wire out of the ceiling, white from the remote unit goes to the two white wires grouped. Cap the two black and one white. When the wall switch is off, the remote will not function until the switch is turned on.


Just found a website describing parts of the process, the wine bottle corks are produced here with polyurethane. It also seems to be frequently used in cork floors.


What do I need to connect a refrigerator water line?

You will need a compression fitting for both ends if you don't already have them.  Often the fridges will come with a plastic supply line but I always like to replace it with a copper one as they last longer and are less prone to damage.

You might also want to verify the valve works correctly.  If it is a piercing-type valve, the often fail and should be replaced with a soldered/compression fitting.


There isn't any rule/code against it.  Once you hit 135 degrees you are required to have a clean-out - if they look.  I would personally use two 45s or a long-turn 90.  If you buy a short 90 the world won't explode but you will be pumping your stuck toilet more.


Mounting a sliding barn door without a header

Your "sandwich" idea would work, but here's a simpler design that accomplishes the same thing:


Assuming that:

"outlet" refers to a typical dual-receptacle (because otherwise this wouldn't make sense - replace a single receptacle with a dual receptacle doesn't require putting in a bigger box)
Typical (i.e., not Chicago) NM (Romex) wiring

this is very straightforward:

Disconnect the existing receptacle
Run a new 12/2 cable from the original location to the new location
In the original location, connect the original black (hot) wire to two short black wires and the new 12/2 cable black wire
In the original location, connect the original white (neutral) wire to two short white wires and the new 12/2 cable white wire
In the original location, connect the original ground wire to two short bare wires and the new 12/2 cable ground wire
Connect each receptacle in the original location (one old, one new) to a set of hot/neutral/ground. Do NOT remove the tabs on the sides of the receptacles.
In the new location, connect hot/neutral/ground to the new receptacle


Solution for desk chair on an uneven floor

I would think that the plastic chair mat would work well if you used it in conjunction with some type of padding under it. A piece of short pile rubber backed carpet that was trimmed to the same size as the chair mat would bridge the underlying uneven joining strip.

In my work lab I use these plastic chair mats to cover the whole carpeted floor (four mats laid side by side / end to end). They rest in a short pile carpet and have been in use for 12 years now. Only in the last 3-4 months has one started to crack.

If you get the type of clear plastic mats that are made from a flexible plastic they will hold up longer than the very hard dense plastic style.


Two Poles Three Black Wires and One White - Convert to 120 V Outlets

One of your three black wires is actually connected to the LOAD NEUTRAL terminal so you have two hots and one neutral. Unfortunately, whoever installed this used three black wires and apparently did not mark the neutral.

The wires can be used but you must replace the breaker. Putting a standard 15 or 20 amp outlet on a 50 amp breaker is highly dangerous and against code. You can use either a 240 volt (dual) 15 or 20 amp breaker with all three wires or cap off one of the hots and use a 120 volt (single) 15 or 20 amp breaker.

Two caveats: first, you need to identify the neutral wire and color the ends white, probably with white electrical tape. Second, the wire you have is too large diameter to connect to either the breaker or outlets. You’ll have to make pigtails using 12 AWG wire.

BTW, you currently have a GFCI breaker. You need GFCI protection on outdoor outlets. In my opinion, you’re better continuing to use a GFCI breaker since the outlet will be exposed to the weather and a GFCI outlet will have a short lifespan.


Your insulation on the wire may touch the element and melt back but I have never seen it burn. The big deal to watch out for is no loose wires that could touch the side of the oven. That could cause an arc and damage both the wire and oven. If the wire is covered (with just a few strands of the insulation loose) I would use it.

Remember the first time you heat it up don't put any food in as the element needs to outgass anything that may still be on it from the production process. After 5 minutes at 350 air out the oven and you should be good to go.


It seems similar enough to "blacktop" (asphalt, tarmacadam, etc...) to apply the advice given in this greenhouse manual (page 7) - basically to dust with portland cement (get white rather than gray, if you can find it) and then sprinkle/mist with water. Certainly the product linked appears to be congruent with common driveway blacktop sealer. I have only read the advice in question, not tried it.

Tennis court toppings should also work, I believe, and are commonly available in green, blue, or red - and possibly many other colors.


I assume by your question you want to run a 120 volt line and use the Level 1 charger that comes with the car.

If you are going to the trouble and expense of adding a receptacle circuit I would highly recommend a 20 amp circuit not a 15. The cost difference is small and takes the same amount of work to install.

At a later date it could be easily converted to a 20 amp 240 volt circuit to accommodate a Level 2 charger that will charge your car in 4 hours or so.

The smallest dedicated EV charger for a Chevy Volt will need a 20 amp circuit not a 15.

On the Clipper Creek web site you can choose your vehicle and it shows you the recommended chargers.

Normally, the larger the charger (higher amperage and voltage) the higher the cost but the faster it charges.

All that said, to answer your question, under the trailer and outside you should run PVC conduit to protect your wiring and survive the elements. Also, PVC is the easiest for a novice to install. NM cable can not be used in a wet or damp location so you will need to run THWN rated wire from the breaker box to the new receptacle in an approved conduit like PVC. You should run #12 gauge wire for a 20 amp circuit pulling 3 wires colored black, white, and green.

If you are going to hire an electrician to assist it may be just a few dollars more to have them do the whole job. Consider this.

Good luck and stay safe!


Help with replacing 3 way switch with a smart 3 way switch

The DW1KD goes in the box with the switch and the funny yellow jumper

The funny yellow jumper wire was part of a scheme to convert the switch at the line/load location (the "main" location) to a single pole switch to be used with the 3-way functionality in the existing dimmer (at the "dimmer" location), given that the dimmer was installed as a switch loop from the "main" switch box where both the line and load connections are present.  However, the DW1KD has the downside that it must be on the load side of the circuit, and the current dimmer location is on the line side of the circuit.

So, you'll need to install the DW1KD at the box where the switch was, and the matching remote at the box where the dimmer was, as follows:

Remove the white wire in the top center cable from the bundle of black wires in the switch box
Dimmer black to the extant bundle of black wires and the black wire going off to the remote location (black wire, top center cable) as the remote needs always-hot and neutral to function, in addition to the communications line, instead of relying on traditional travelers
Dimmer white to the existing bundle of neutrals (it's in the top right rear of the switch box) and the white wire in the top center cable (making it a neutral instead of a switch-loop hot)
Dimmer red to the red wire going off to the fan (red wire, top left cable)
Dimmer red/yellow to the red wire going off to the remote location (red wire, top center cable)
Dimmer ground to the existing grounding pigtail
Remote black to the black wire in the remote box
Remote white to the white wire in the remote box
Remote yellow/red to the red wire in the remote box
Remote ground to the bare ground wire in the remote box


How to cut away ceramic from a sink that doesn't fit

Since you are intending to remove the "stem" of the faucets I would concentrate on that instead of the sink itself. Seems to make sense to concentrate on the goal instead of getting sidetracked with these other details. (I have to assume that removal of the faucet is all about replacing it with something new).

To that end I would still recommend a Dremel tool with a cut off tool and a decent pair of eye protection goggles. Use the Dremel to cut completely through the retaining nut on two or three sides if possible. See cut areas as suggested below on the flats of the nut so there is less to grind through:

Once cut through you can use a flat blade screw driver to widen the cuts and pull portions of the retainer nut free from the stem threads. Since we are assuming replacement here the fact that the Dremel cut off tool will grind into the stem threads is of little concern.

When you go looking for a faucet assembly look carefully for one that has a long threaded part that will extend down below the lip of that butchered sink. This will allow you to slip some tubing (even a short piece of PVC pipe would work) over the threaded part offset where the new retaining nut and washer will tighten to. From the looks of it the tubing should be able to clear the butcher slot cut in the sink lip. If the PVC type tubing has too thick of wall a piece of brass drain pipe would work too. Just make sure the tubing is cut nice and square on each end.


When does an under the sink P-Trap assembly need venting?

All traps need venting in all cases. Without a vent, the water seal in the trap gets sucked out and sewer gases can enter the room. There's also all sorts of examples where someone thought they were providing venting, but done in such a way that clearing the water seal was still a possibility. Some of these methods even used to be accepted practice, such as S traps. There's still several appropriate ways to achieve proper venting. For example, in island sink situations, a loop or foot vent is acceptable.

It's hard to say why the previous installation worked without venting. For sure, one way or another, the siphon action was disturbed by the entrance of air somehow, either from oversized pipe or leaking fittings. Regardless, where do you go from here? The downward facing ell in wall needs to be replaced with a sanitary tee for starters. The top of the new tee needs to tie into a vent somewhere, without travelling downwards. Is there a vent pipe nearby, such as from a toilet or shower? Or a pipe could perhaps be extended up into the attic, where it should be much easier to make a run to a vent pipe?

If all that sounds like too much, get a mechanical vent such as jberger suggested. They are not accepted by many codes, but they do work. Just be sure it's attached to a long enough pipe so that the valve is above the flood level of the sink. No doubt this all sounds like a real PITA right now. Once it's all done, you can take pride and sleep well knowing you have a properly functioning and completely sanitary sink drainage.


84' wall leans 5",17' out. Pulling to plumb, + columns, save wall?

If it is just a privacy wall, leave it be, unless you really want to spend a lot of bucks tearing it down and rebuilding it. If it is a retainer wall, with the dirt a lot higher on one side than the other, which is pushing the wall out, then it may need to be rebuilt if it is a relatively new wall and was not built properly to start with.


This fell out of my toilet when I unscrewed the supply line. What is it?

This appears to do a few things.

A backflow preventer.  Note the nub on the "top", that should actually go down.  Gravity and back pressure seats it on the inlet pipe to try to prevent tank water from backing up into the supply lines if there's a pressure loss or shutoff.
A flow limiter.  Without it the toilet will flow faster, but will be more susceptible to water hammer.  The automatic valve opens and closes quicker than humans, and flowing water has inertia. Changes in inertia cause force.  That force can be destructive, which is what water hammer is.
A shock absorber, if it's made of rubber.  This adds some compressibility to an incompressible medium, to help with water hammer effects, especially acting on that valve.


Hardwire or plug in for LED strip lighting?

No matter what you do, yes, you have to follow electrical codes (in North America, the NEC), and this means proper enclosures for any mains voltage stuff. The NEC doesn't have anything to say about low voltage (<= 30V) wiring.

Essentially this comes down to preference, there's no right answer as to what is 'better'. A hard-wired solution can have a neater final appearance, but it's also more work to install and very difficult to remove.

Since what you're doing is kind of non-standard, I'd personally go with something easier to remove.

Install an outlet somewhere up high and near the door frame, then install a light switch (wherever is convenient) wiring it so the switch controls half the outlet. I'd look for a plug-in type transformer ("wall wart" style), wire it to the LED strip and plug it into the controlled outlet.

If you trim excess wire from the transformer (and maybe even run a small bit of stick-on conduit) it will still be very neat, and the benefit is you can completely remove the LED strip and be left with a standard plug and switch. Later someone could plug in their own light to this, or even convert the outlet to an actual light fixture (depending on where you put the outlet).


How can I remove the old wood smell from furniture?

It's a little difficult to say that it will be a definite fix but a great start would be refinishing the inside of the cabinet. While I'm sure its possible to re-stain and seal the inside of a cabinet that just seems like way too much work so I'd stick with painting.

I found this nice article about painting cabinets if you want some design ideas. The process shouldn't be all that involved. You'll probably want to sand first and clean the shavings out well then give it a nice coat of whatever color you decide to go with and let it dry. Pretty much like painting any other piece of furniture, just a little bit more of a pain to get inside there.

I once stripped and painted all the drawers and cabinets on a work truck and that was a real pain. Luckily I was able to use a paint sprayer so that made it a heck of a lot easier. If you know someone with a paint spraying system beg them to use it and the finish and coverage in the tight areas will be wonderful.

Just my $0.02 and I can't say that this will be a definite solution but I can't imagine a wood smell getting through a through coating of paint. If your really worried you could use some thick outdoor paint that's designed to work as a sealer too. Best of luck with your project, post pictures if your need help along the way!


Two circuit breaker switches controlling the same outlet, and a question about removing outlet tabs

Yes, there is a reason not to break the tabs on every receptacle that has four wires (2 black and 2 white). With the tabs in place the receptacle is a way of joining an incoming line from the panel to a cable which is feeding more receptacles and lights further on. If you would break the tabs on all receptacles, you would have to make these connections with lengths of wire and wire nuts. It would be a lot of trouble.

The only reason to break these tabs is if you want the two receptacles in a duplex receptacle to be powered through two different breakers.

If you have a receptacle with one or both tabs broken and you want to restore the connection between the receptacles, there is a kind of pigtail with wire that can be used to connect the two receptacles, but it is trouble and takes up space.


It rather depends on your shed construction, but can't you just have the wall overhang the beam by 2" (or even 3")?  That way the overhang will cover the error up completely.


How can I remove tiles without damaging the heating mat underneath?

I assume you will put new tiles on top of the heating pad. It is very tedious to remove tiles without damaging the heating pad. I would do it using hand tools (hammer, chisels) or low powered tools (dremel). I would cut out the grout lines first and start chipping the tiles.  It goes without saying this is very time consuming if you have a large area (usually kitchens are).

But once the tiles are off, cleaning up the thinset left on your mat is even more challenging.  There are much more chances of damaging the mat in this step and no good way to remove it. Typically I remove the thinset with a grinder using a concrete disk. But doing it while avoiding contact with the mat seems difficult and stressing to me. The grinder can be rather unforgiven and we need to keep it steady over a long period of time. The heating mat is also not completely flat (usually look like below).  You need to clean the floor well for the new thinset to achieve a good bond with your floor.

The solution comes down to time vs cost.  I would personally replace the mats if they are old.  You will save time and money.  New mats are more energy efficient.


How can I seal air leaks and otherwise winterize, as a renter?

For outlets, there are pre-cut foam gaskets that fit under the faceplates. You could leave those or remove when you go, as you prefer.

For windows that you will leave closed all winter, shrink film window sealing kits cover the whole window (best to put them all the way to the outside edge of the frame) and are fairly clear and non-obtrusive once shrunk, plus they seal the whole window (frame and all) if done that way. Peel them off in the spring.

I have used removable caulk on one building. Horribly stinky stuff, but it did peel off with no damage in the spring.


Is this Radiator handle/valve a replaceable part? Do I need to drain the system first?

I have lived with hot-water heating for 70+ years.  I have never seen this valve used.  I have been strongly advised to never touch them, since the packing washer will have hardened decades ago, and turning the handle (if possible) could produce a permanent leak out of the system around the stem. All my systems have been one boiler-one circulating pump, feeding all the radiators, and one thermostat to switch the boiler on/off...

If you chose to remove the valve, you will need to shut off any make-up water supply, and drain all the water from that part of the system at or above the level of the radiator valve.

It is quite likely that you will need to loosen the large square fitting to access the washer that shuts off the flow of water through the radiator.


If your existing threshold is structurally sound without cracks or water damage, there is no need to replace it.You can sand it down and then coat it with a marine varnish or some other outdoor sealer/stain.
If your threshold is damaged in any way, then it should be replaced to prevent tripping. The screws that hold the threshold down are usually visible from the top. Remove them and pry up the threshold. Take the removed threshold to you home store and get a replacement close to your original one. You could also take measurements before removing the threshold and do your shopping before removing it. Seal and attach your new threshold following the direction that came with it.


It means that the appliance will consume 168 kWh of energy in one year. 1 kWh (kilowatt-hour) is a measure of energy and is equivalent to the energy used by a device drawing 1 kW of power for 1 hour, which is equal to 3.6 MJ.

Here in the US, electricity rates range from about $0.10 to $0.40 per kWh, so one could expect to pay somewhere between $20 and $70 to operate that freezer over the course of one year. You can get a similar estimate using your own rate.


No, other than any support brackets holding the pipe/fin-tube up. The "new front" does need vents below and above the finned tubing to permit airflow for functional reasons.


Can I run 100A service from a 200A panel in a garage to a house with an existing 60A service?

National Electrical Code 2014
Chapter 2 Wiring and Protection
Article 230 Services
I. General
230.2 Number of Services. A building or other structure
served shall be supplied by only one service...

If you live in an area covered by NEC, you're only option is to upgrade the service to the house.


What recessed lighting technology is recommended for LED?

Get something that works with a standard medium-base floodlight bulb.

But when it comes to safety of heat dissipation and the load on the circuit and switch, don't assume the can will always have an efficient, low-heat LED or CFL. Build so the lighting is still safe to operate with nasty old EZ-Bake Edison bulbs.

IMHO, LEDs and CFLs are both already affordable, since they will pay off relatively quickly in energy savings. I haven't bought an incandescent bulb in years and I'll never go back to them.

One other thing to keep in mind: both LED and CFL bulbs are harder to come by in "dimmable" form, and having non-dimmable bulbs on a dimmer switch, even at full-blast, can result in annoying blinking and buzzing, and the dimmer switches made for LED and CFLs are pretty pricey for now. I recommend just putting in a normal light switch (again, watch that load!) and worry about any dimming features later.


Why is foam coming out of the kitchen drain while washing dishes?

I'd start by making sure you aren't just using too much soap in the dishwasher. More likely, the dishwasher is pumping water into the same waste pipe that the floor drain is connected to, and the pipe can't handle the water fast enough to keep the floor drain from backing up. I'd suggest two things:

First, check to make sure that the drain itself isn't running slow and start treating it with an enzyme drain cleaner. It probably wouldn't hurt to run a plumbing snake down the drain to make sure it isn't partially blocked.

Second, you can install a floor drain check valve for the drain in the kitchen floor to keep water from backing up through it. Even if you can resolve the issue by cleaning out the drain, this would probably be a good idea. You never know what else might back up through there some day.


How do I convert an A/C window unit from thermostat to humidistat control?

http://www.google.com/search?q=humidity+sensor+switch

assuming it is rated for the draw on your A/C unit, the very first hit is this item:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003Q6CGKW

I didn't look any further than that first hit.


Can I use a chest freezer in an unconditioned garage which often gets very hot and humid?

No you don't need to do anything special. People have freezers in houses that are not air conditioned after all.

Obviously keeping it powered and the door closed as much as possible will help keep a stable temperature.


Pouring concrete on top of old chunks and other larger rock

Use crushed stone and compact it, definitely if it's outside. Drainage and weather, and any type of weight on it will expose weak points where the uneven subsurface is lying.


Where can I get a threaded wooden/metal rod for an adjustable piano stool?

If you have a router, you can use the Beall Wood Threader. A kit to thread one-inch dowels is US$85. They have kits to do smaller sizes or multi-size kits. Parts are included to do both inside and outside threading.

You can find a hand tool on eBay.

Here's a source for ready-to-use threaded dowels in half-inch and three-quarter-inch diameters up to three feet in length.

Here is a source for metal hardware: Lee Valley Tools.

Additional information can be found by searching for "threaded dowel" or "piano stool threaded".


Detaching large ceramic tile without breaking it

I have had (some) success using the following technique:

using a utility knife or grout saw, remove as much grout as you can
using a narrow margin trowel (see pic) with a hammer, carefully tap the trowel under the tile in as many places as you can. This breaks up the mortar somewhat. Do not use any leveraging type action until you have tapped the trowel under the tile around as much of the perimeter as possible
carefully start using leverage with a wide margin trowel in various spots around the tile until it (hopefully) pops free in one piece


How can I remove paint smears on my vinyl siding?

When I get paint on something like clothing I use nail polish remover. It takes time to soften the paint and remove it, but it doesn't harm the fabric.


What your seeing is called efflorescence which are mineral deposits from moisture which sometimes seeps through exterior walls. Even though the basement walls may be inset from  the main level water will migrate through soil layers. It appears that the other side of that wall is in contact with compacted soil. Even if it was water-proofed during construction moisture can sometimes seep through.
I don't think it looks serious. It would be different if water was obvious or pooling on the interior. At this point you can treat the interior walls with water-proofing material such as Drylok or Flex Seal. Although it might solve the efflorescence issue it won't keep moisture from seeping into the wall from the soil. The other option is to excavate the exterior of the wall and treat it with water-proofing which would be labor-intensive or prohibitively expensive.
As I indicated I would try to keep exterior groundwater away from the foundation and if the efflorescence is a major concern for you can treat the wall with an interior water-proofing product.


Mower blades are generally sold with the length designation matching the mower deck width. A larger riding mower may have a swathe width of 42", but they'll usually use two or more blades in a side-by-side or staggered configuration rather than one large blade.

So before buying, figure out what brand your mower is, and what the deck width is. Then when you're looking in the store, match the brand and deck width with the mower blade set. The blades won't actually be 42" long - probably more along the lines of 21.5" or 22", since they have to overlap a bit for you to not end up with a center stripe of unmowed grass.

For example, this pair of blades meant for a 42" riding mower are 21.5" long each, and this pair of blades meant for a different brand of riding mower are 25.25" long each. The reason for the different lengths but the same overall width, is that the mowing decks have different geometries of how the blades are spaced and staggered.

The blades labelled 21" were probably for a push or walk behind mower with an actual deck width of 21".


Water leak from water hose or pump - OK to tip machine on side?

Yes it's fine to tip it on its side. (at least that's what our washing machine repair man did). The water should be drained first.


Electrical wiring question - interconnect question

There may be other ways, but I'd use simple relay logic.

Three separate relays, switched contacts wired in parallel, connected to power for damper and damper.

Each relay has a coil that controls the relay - those are connected (individually - one relay coil per circuit) to the switched circuits.

Any one circuit being on will open the damper. Two or three circuits on will leave the damper open. When the last circuit is shut down, the damper closes.


Why do installers leave a gap between vinyl tiles?

No.   Professional installers do not lay vinyl tile squares like that.   These are literally the easiest tiles in the world to install.   These are butted right next to each other.

The only reason they could be installed like this is the dumb*ss doing the install watched a tile install video and thought it applied to vinyl squares too.

Side note - there is really nothing you can do.   There is nothing that will fill the crack that will stick well and function in a kitchen.   You could poly over the whole floor but that could be creating more of a problem.


Will this replacement induction cooktop fit in the cutout for the old cooktop?

Original
According to the documentation the original requires a 495mm x 565mm cutout, and has an overall size of 520mm x 590mm.

Source

New
According to the documentation the new unit requires a 490mm x 560mm cutout, and has an overall size of 520mm x 590mm.

Source
Source (PDF)

Side by Side

                Old     New
Width           590     590
Depth           520     520
Cutout Width    565     560
Cutout Depth    495     490

Verdict
While the new model requires a bit smaller cutout, the overall size of the cooktops are the same. So other than possibly requiring a bit of shimming, the new model should fit without a problem.


Attaching painted MDF to finished wood wall


Well if it was me I would simply use 2x8s just like regular floor joists, running perpindicular to the existing floor joists, and plywood subfloor above that. Modern dimensional 2x8 lumber is actually 1.5" x 7.25" so if you use 3/4" plywood it would be exactly 8" tall.


can i use a transformer to run an american steam cleaner ( 120v/60hz) on a 220v/50hz

If the steam cleaner doesn't have motors on board you won't have issues going from 60Hz to 50Hz.
Anyway I think that will cost you less if you buy a new 220V cleaner and resell the one you have instead of buying a transformer (220V to 110V for that appliance)


Rats - dealing with what appears to be a colony of them

If you're not squeamish, a trash can with a diving board and a pool of water in the bottom will kill hundreds of rats with low effort.

Actual trap: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-Dunk-The-Rat-Trap-Rat-Squirrel-Trap-Auto-Reset-USA-MADE/132422341963?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649

Review/setup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfaDQJVplYI


A newer gas hot water heater keeps getting colder. Where is the first place to look?

It ends up it was not directly the hot water heater. We have a leak in a hot water line that goes down into the foundation of our basement which is even worse. I thought I'd come back and update in case someone sees this in the future. Thank you to all who answered.


How can I mitigate water contact with a 2x4 screwed into concrete floor?

Looking at Mattias' article on woodgears.ca, I think you can hang the uprights from the overhead floor joists and cut them off above the floor.
The 2x4s coming down the wall provide a method to affix the shelving unit to the wall, not provide support from the floor. Some of the other contributors have "half-height" shelves pictured that only come down the wall so far.
You could probably still do it by "hanging" the uprights from the ceiling, but I don't know that it can support as much weight as installing it as designed.


Is there a "Right" direction to build soffit with plywood?

Putting the sheathing to the outside makes hitting backing easier when hanging drywall, etc. On the other hand, it may be easier to hang the verticals pre-assembled if the sheathing is to the inside, as you can then screw through the 2-by into the joists unobstructed. From a structural standpoint it does the job equally well inside or outside. Do whatever makes sense in your situation.

OSB is more dimensionally stable than plywood (so you're not fighting warp while you build), and it's usually quite a bit cheaper. For this purpose 7/16 or 1/2" is more than adequate as the drywall adds support as well.


Why is my kitchen faucet dripping even after water is shut-off?

both or one of your shut off valves is not shutting off completely and has a small drip which builds up in the cartridge housing. the new cartridge fills that void up causing it to leak again.

This is the only logical explanation i can think of.

You didnt say if you replaced the cartridge with a new or seals.  So if not the do so and it should stop leaking if you do it right.


Just doing the math for the area A = πr2

1/2 inch pipe that is A = π(.25)^2
3/4 inch pipe that is A = π(.375)^2

You can see the difference in area and that changes the amount of volume that will flow. Your water heater has a flow rate based on its piping and therefore it will be the limiting factor. Your house could handle more.

The only problem I can foresee possibly happening and would be most likely after install is that your 3/4 pipes could have an air gap but this should dissipate over time by running the water slowly in order to fill the line and build pressure.


Is it possible to seal just patches of new concrete?

It isn't critical that all the concrete be sealed at once. It's essentially just a varnish, and while you may see variation in sheen where your applications overlap, it won't affect performance with most products.
When in doubt read the label.


How to open the cover of flush mounted ceiling light dome to change light bulb

They may be set screws which would normally require  an Allen driver. That would give you access with the short part of the proper sized Allen driver.


Do I run screws through the "tops" or through the "bottoms" of the corrugated steel in roofing?

A

If you choose B you will dimple the steel, ruining the look while creating a penetration point for water because expansion and contraction of the metal due to heating and cooling will create an open access point for water to enter, and a big opening behind it to receive it.

A, however, will give you a tight seal against the wood, wood-steel-screw in a nice tight sandwich - resisting expansion/contraction gaps and thus protecting much more effectively against water penetration while preserving the look of the corrugated steel


What could cause a drawer in a bedside table to become stuck?

If the drawers have the more modern full extension ball bearing slides it is possible for the slider intermediate rail to get aligned to one end opposite it's normal operating position. This can cause the drawer to either not pull out all the way or not close all the way when you push/pull the drawer with gentle force. A higher force will cause the intermediate rail to slide on its balls instead of rolling thus getting the piece into it's proper position.


I've had that happen on my double oven Viking range. The igniter would glow, but not draw enough current to convince the gas valve to open. One oven had two igniters the other smaller oven had one.  All of them eventually failed.  I found higher quality after-market igniters and they have been working fine for many years now, lasting longer than the OEM ones.
Not sure if this applies to you, but it's close.


How should I pump water throughout a house from holding tanks in the basement?

To set this up with a submersible pump, you need to have:

Submersible pump: at bottom of cistern. You'll want to clean any sediment from the tank before installing, as if the intake is directly on the bottom then it will suck it up and could possibly clog the pump or your plumbing fixtures.
Control box: needed only if you have a 3-wire pump; 2-wire pumps don't need this.
Normally open float switch: located at bottom of tank, set so that when it's down, it shuts off, and wired in series with the power to the control box so it prevents the pump from turning on when the tank is empty.
Pressure tank system: Pressure tank, pressure switch, gauge, and sed valve (not shown). This is just the typical setup to use with a pump
Shut-off valve to the house: again, just typical part to make servicing easier

Optionally, you can install a second normally closed float switch (set to turn on when facing down) at a slightly higher level than the other one, and wired to an indicator light in the bathroom or wherever. This will alert you when the tank is almost empty.


Can I extend a light switch loop to add an outlet?

It's not possible. If you add a device on those lines you'll close the circuit to your light/fan and have several devices in series. This reduces voltage and creates a potentially hazardous situation.


Mitigating an out of plumb foundation wall

This is a very good mitigating method for a leaning basement wall.   The lean isn't really an issue.  It is the buckling that is costly.  As long as these prevent buckling they are doing their job.

Some notes:

whether these are 4', 6', 8' or 20' apart is surely determined by an engineer at the site or a company using best practice for foundation type and area.  Every 8' feet seems about the norm.
from the picture it looks like cinder block (or some sort of block) foundation.  Note that you can still have buckling between the piers but I would tell you that this should be something that happens in far future, not all of a sudden and possibly never.
the tell-tale signs that the wall is still failing is water.  You should get cracks before anything severe happens.  Also the wall may be more prone to cracks (not a lot more) due to it not having the ability to drift.
make sure that water isn't hitting this wall from the outside.  Your yard should be graded well and no water coming directly off the roof.

I have mentioned before that I have flipped a fair share of houses, and a lot with foundation issues.  I would be extremely happy with the treatment of this wall.  I don't think the foundation is a huge red flag either.  This is certainly something you should watch though.  What caused this foundation to lean?  Was it the soil?  Improper footers?   Issues with the outside of the house?  You need to investigate this a bit more because you need to figure out if the rest of the walls will fail or if you can help mitigate the issue yourself.  So it seems to be fixed right but what can you do to make sure the wall isn't feeling pressure still?


How to figure the angle to drill from an above ground carport to basement next to it?

use a water level to find matching level spots inside and outside of the basement

get a large jar of water

get some tubing 1/8" to 1/4" long enough to reach from the carport, through a window or door onto the basement floor and up the wall of the basement

fill the tubing with water, put one end in the jar of water (loop it through a large metal washer to keep it submerged)

plug the other end with your thumb and drag the the tube into the basement

hold the tubing high against the wall and release your thumb

the water level in the tubing will settle to the same level as the water in the jar


What type of wire do I need for garage door sensors?

Typically 22/2 bell wire is used.  You can pick it up at any hardware store.


What material should I use to seal door moldings, small holes between walls and floors to prevent roaches?

Just get a quality silicone caulk and go through the house caulking every opening. Get one that's paintable. They also come in a variety of colors so you might not have to paint over them. This type of caulk is water proof so if it comes in contact with moisture, you'll be ok. This will work on just about every surface there is. It also comes in tubes so you might not need a gun. The guns are inexpensive and you can get all this stuff at your home store. Good luck.


Should I reconfigure my shared neutral breakers to have tied handles

If... you ever decide to replace an outlet, and you turn off the breaker that controls that outlet, and you remove the white & black wires from that outlet... but the other paired breaker is not turned off, and whatever that breaker powers is drawing power... then the white wire in your hand is going to be live, and it will flat plumb shock you. Even with your breaker turned off.

If anyone else for any reason replaces an outlet and "does everything right" by turning off the breaker first, then they will get the blazes shocked out of them by that white neutral wire. That "anyone else" may be your best friend, or may be the next owner of the house who's got a pacemaker to keep their heart going. Your complacency here could result in someone's death.

It's not like anyone's suggesting a project costing many thousands of dollars or requiring months of work. A two-pole breaker costs about $10US and takes about five minutes to replace. If you need to shuffle all the wires around that breaker box, the whole job may take you two hours.

It's worth doing.


showerhead for showers with little water?

There is a flow restrictor in all shower heads. The usual design is a plastic disc with two or three holes in it.

The maximum flow allowed by law in a new head as offered for sale is 2.5 gal/min. Most people find this adequate, generous but welcome, or even too much. Lower flow shower heads have a more restrictive restrictor (smaller or fewer holes in the restrictor disc) to give a lower flow. Since most people limit their shower by time rather than amount of water, this saves hot water. So the 1.4 gal/min that you have is probably by design of the restrictor and is not a sign of low water pressure.

It is not illegal for a consumer to remove the restrictor and get greater flow. You can probably find a youtube video on how to do this.

EDIT

I got new low flow shower heads (1.5 gal/min, hand holdable with hose) for our house and our old tankless water heater began working erratically. For a long time I didn't realize it was due to changing to the low flow heads. The water heater would shut off in the middle of a shower because the flow rate was insufficient to keep it on. (Tankless heaters have a minimum flow for the unit to turn on and to stay on.)

Once I realized what the problem was I tried to drill out the holes in the restrictors, but this still didn't solve the problem. Once I removed the restrictors entirely the heater would stay on. (A tank water heater does not have this problem. It will deliver a trickle of hot water if that's what you want, or if there is a small leak).

Before I tried drilling out the flow restrictor I emailed a local expert plumbing supply asking about calibrated 2.0 gal/min restrictors -- they replied they had just exactly that. But when I got there it turned out that the ones they had were too large to fit in the cheap ($15) heads I had. I then tried drilling out the existing restrictors, but when my first attempt didn't work I just removed them entirely. I wash our dog in one of these showers and the extra flow is welcome for that use. A flow of 1.5 gal/min is too low to efficiently wash a dog with a thick or long coat.

These are handheld heads with hose to them and I have since installed the same model in two other houses where they are apparently working fine with the original 1.5 gal/min flow restrictors in place. One of these houses has a tank (40 or 50 gal) and the lower flow will reduce the number of incidences where one showering uses all the hot water. The other house has the same model of tankless heater we have, but that heater seems to be accepting the a 1.5 gal/min head.


Vacuum it out, preferably with a Wet-Dry or Shop Vacuum that has a thin nozzle attachment applied parallel with the seam or a floor sealing Water Pickup attachment applied perpendicular to the seam. To assist this operation you can tape the seam so the vacuum's seal is concentrated. A bag-less vacuum can work just as well, but be careful not to fill it more than 1/3rd & damage the vacuum or electrocute yourself.

If those don't get most of it or neither are available to you then a thin towel or cloth, like bed sheets or clothing can be stuffed into the seam with a putty or butter knife to soak up & wring out until dry or mostly dry. Avoid paper towels as they can easily rip & are a pain to straighten back out repeatedly.

Then, let it air dry. If you need to use the shower then just duct tape the seam to keep water out for one. But for another, to see if the water is coming from somewhere else & the seam is filling up again. If it's unchanged then keep taping & un-taping until it's bone dry.

Finally, actually fill-fill the seam with caulk & force the caulk in with your finger. Don't bother trying to get it perfect the first time, instead come back in a couple of hours & do a second application of caulk to get the caulk flush to both the floor & wall. Then, don't use the shower for at least 6-hours. If you can't wait that long or longer then tape OVER, as in bridge, but don't tape ON the caulk.


Intermittent low pressure natural gas to outside grill

As you can see from the image natural gas is supplied to commercial industrial and residential customers off the same line. I know it's a crude image but it's really how it works. If there was a significant pressure drop on a main branch of the system then commercial and industrial customers would be offline, resulting in Factory shutting down and other complications.  Residential draw is the equivalent of taking a cup out of a swimming pool. That being said I would replace the regulator. I have been on the receiving end of some really nice barbeques because of faulty regulators. I actually have a bin of them right next to me as I write this.  it's the one marked REGS it's an inexpensive repair. The only other thing I would look at is the gas line in your house. If it's undersized and your furnace or water heater starts you could experience pressure drop, resulting in a lazy flame.


I have a Janitrol Model A42-15 and I wanti to replace the outside unit, but it takes the dreaded R22

Can you use the new refrigerant with the existing inside unit?

A process called flushing is done to achieve this - the inside coils (Evaporator) AND the lines that feed the Evaporator are cleaned out with a solution - it is also done with nitrogen. The flushing not only removes old refrigerant, but also the old oil which can be detrimental to the new compressor.
There are some caveats to this as pressures of the new refrigerant will be higher and therefore you will face the possibility of a leak and then need to replace the unit.

My outside unit is a 3.5 ton unit but I am going to need a 4 ton due
to an expansion of an added room to the home.

[Do you really need to upsize your unit Sizing Calculator at this Link uses the J-Model Sizing Calculations][1]
Now here is the issue you have with upsizing your unit.
The inside unit is most likely a 3.0 / 3.5 ton evaporator and normally an orifice is what changes the performance capacity for the evaporator.
You will not be able to install a 4 ton unit and expect to have 4 ton cooling capacity EXCEPT you install an Evaporator that is capable of 4 Ton Capacity.
Also upsizing you have another issue depending on your unit and the piping originally done - you might not have the correct pipe diameter from outside to inside unit  (called a line set) - in which case the line set will need to be replaced as well. (if they don't do this - you will have issues (a higher electric bill as well as wasted money on a 4 ton unit operating at 3 ton levels).
Here is my advice:
Replace both the inside and outside units with a new unit - and also the line set going from inside to outside unit - if you spend a little more money and get a 16 seer unit - there might be tax credits available, not much but perhaps enough to Just offset the cost difference. You can also look into the utility company and see if they offer credits for more efficient units. Some units can run on Gas lines - so the possibility is the gas company might give you a break (or the furnace for that matter gas/ electric they might give you a break for using a gas furnace - perhaps even pipe it up for you (they expect a customer buying gas instead of electricity.. crafty way to get new business. sometimes the state will give you a credit for an energy efficient unit.

Depending; you could get a little or a lot, now if you only get a
little how does it sound worth it if you only get tax credits that
basically is a wash out?

Your electric bill will be lower (how much depends on how cold you keep the house and how hot it is outside) but expect at least $15/month ($150/yr) aka known as Grocery money.
A Typical 4 Ton unit from a reputable AC place will run you about $5000 to $10,000 ..  I have just replaced a complete unit   / except the line set [3.5 ton] for a property in another state the total was $5400. If I had replaced the unit here in the home I live in the price tag would have been $3500. There can be big differences so shop around.
Here is what these AC companies like to do - they like to schedule to come out (they do have good reasons for this - but more on why you should not do that up front).
That is the sales pitch and the pressure to sign on the dotted line as well as how many people you would be willing to have come out and give you an estimate of cost?
I would venture most people would have 1 or 2 come out and rarely a 3rd..
DON'T let them come out - just tell them you want to know the rough cost over the phone for replacing the entire unit Air Handler/ Evaporator , Condensing Unit and Line Set with a 4 Ton Unit. Get the rough prices and the brand and types of units - try to keep the same type of unit and SEER rating across the board with all of them.
After you get that rough phone quote (some might not be willing to rough quote - just go ok and move on) - select 3 of them that gave you a rough quote and have them come out and give you the complete written estimate from a home visit.
I called around many people would not quote anything over the phone and insisted to come out (I am sure I would have had the $8,500 to $10,000 quotes at that point) along with the sales pitch and the yes ok I will work with you and drop to $7500.. after getting my [3.5 ton] unit installed / furnace ($5400) an ac person told me I got a REALLY good deal and for what I asked for I should have been hearing $7000 and up and he was right that was what a lot of them told me.
[1]: https://www.acdirect.com/ac-package-unit-learning-center-ac-sizing-calculator


Opening and closing solenoid deadbolt with key

The normal way is to not use a solenoid to operate the deadbolt but to open the striker plate on the other side. This is called an electric strike

That way you can use a conventional key operated bolt as a way to open the door when there is no electrical power.

You can buy these strikes for retrofitting to normal types of lock, both mortice locks and surface fitted locks.


Is this deck plan strong enough for a hot tub

With the given tub load and 50 psf deck load, I've checked the reactions of the 2x10 joist, and 2x12 beam, assuming there is one beam on each side of the tub. You shall add at least 10% to the design forces indicated in the graph below to check the adequacy of the members.
For foundation, you shall divide the post design load by the footing area to get the bearing pressure, then compare it with the allowable soil pressure. Note you shall leave a safe margin for the weight of the concrete footing, which wasn't included in the calculation.

Notes:

Under tub joist load = (Tub Weight/Tub Area) x joist spacing = (4800#/7'x7') x 8" = 65.3 plf, then add joist and misc. weight rounding up to 80 plf. (*Please double-check the full weight of the tub, it seems low).

Suggest adding bracing between the posts in each direction to resist the lateral loads (wind and from water splashing).

The most critical bending moment of the joist and beam is when the tub is loaded full, the surrounding deck is free of live load (empty).

This is an engineering matter that shouldn't be expected to get a simple answer "Yes" or "No" from a stranger you don't know. Please consult a structural engineer before proceeding. Good luck.


Best fix for failing built-in storage cabinet base?

I would say the best solution is one that gets the particle board monstrosities out of the house, but you probably want a best that's less extreme.
If this is just a trim board preventing stuff from rolling under the cabinet, replacing it with a trim board less subject to falling apart at any hint of moisture would be better. Vinyl trim boards would be arguably "most durable" in that sense, but painted solid wood (not particle board) will likely be fine if the water exposure is not extreme, and will be less expensive than vinyl trim (mostly intended for outdoor use) in my experience.


Installing occupancy switch in a 2 gang scenario

Simply cut the "continuing" wire where it went over the screw of the switch that's being replaced, then strip the ends and pigtail

Some electricians will strip the insulation from the middle of a length of wire and loop it around a terminal-screw to continue it onto other terminal-screws, as you see in your box here.  While this works fine as long as terminal-screw devices are installed, it doesn't work so well with dimmers, smart-switches, and such that bring their own wire pigtails, such as yours.

So, you'll need to convert this to a more traditional wirenut-and-pigtail setup.  With the breaker off, you'll need to take the always-hot (continuing) and ground wires off the old switch, cut them at where they were connected to the old switch, strip both cuts ends back a bit more, and nut them to the corresponding pigtails on the new switch.  From there, you can remove the black switched-hot from the old switch and nut it to the switched-hot pigtail on the new switch, and finally connect the neutral from the new switch in with the bundle of neutrals already present in the box now that the old switch is completely unwired.  Once everything's buttoned up and ready to go, you can flip the breaker back on and enjoy your new occupancy sensor!


Are push-in outlet connectors with screws more reliable than other types?

Screw-down insert connectors are very reliable. They're really no different from a well-done loop under a screw. Just be sure to strip the wire to the correct length. There should be a gauge molded into the outlet back plate.
These aren't really "push-in" connectors since you still have to clamp them. The push-in connectors that are problematic use just a spring tab to engage the wire. They're to be avoided.


I do not think this is a light bulb connection as is and shown in the picture. Without the cap removed and having the ability to see what's behind it, I do not think it may be answered. Look at the photo below for the different light bulb connections.

NOTE: Whoever gave the thumbs down did me wrong. When I posted my answer the first 2 picks were all that was posted and and the text was rewritten after showing those are screws in the fixture. I simply did not remove my answer because I was not sure if we are supposed to.

This type of light bulb (connectors) is referred to as Double Contact Bayonet light bulbs.

My bedroom ceiling lights all use them and they can be found at most hardware stores like Home Depot, Lowes, and even Walmart.

Removing the light bulb: Push in and turn counterclockwise. When it stops turning it can be pulled out. About a 1/16 of a turn. (opposite for replacing the bulb.)


Swap out 20amp breaker with a 15amp for kitchen circuit

Not a code expert or have any quote here...but I think code might require 20 amp circuits in kitchens, since it's expected to have a lot of extra power draw there.

However, what you have now is a fire safety issue.  Far better off with the 15 amp breaker than having wires too small on a 20 amp breaker.

The ideal solution would, of course, be to replace all the wires with 12 gauge.


3 way circuit options to indicate if circuit is active

Using a Z-Wave, Insteon or similar type of "smart" switch would be the simplest way, as just requires replacing the two existing switches. Expect $50-70 per switch. The is the closet thing I'm aware of that's an off-the-shelf solution to your problem.

You could also run a new wire between the two switches, to provide a switched return line that could power an indicator light. I don't know what the situation is like if it's feasible to run a line or worth the effort. Quick search finds some "3-way pilot light" switches that would work. Just to be clear, these require 4 conductors between the two 3-way switches rather than the usual 3.

You could also use a 120V panel-mount indicator light. You'd need to expand to a 2-gang box and custom mount the indicator in a blank faceplate.

Yet another option would be to build a current-sensing light circuit: basically, a current ring on the power line that is capable of sensing the light being on, and in turn, lights up a LED. This would require a custom circuit (though you can find lots of examples on the internet), a transformer to get the ~5VDC (or whatever you use for the circuit), and space to mount all of this stuff (you can't/shouldn't just mount a circuit board inside an enclosure that has 120V in it, it needs to be in a separate enclosure -- offhand I'm not sure if this is part of NEC, but if not it's just common sense).


Yes it's normal.

The holes do not go all the way through but to a space that is covered by another can that does not have holes and can be in contact with the insulation.

Just in case there is also a thermal safety switch within the fixture that automatically turns off the light when too much heat from the bulb has been trapped and the temperature to rise to a certain point. Once the fixture has cooled, the switch turns the light back on again.


Something is beeping in my house intermittently. It is not the smoke or carbon monoxide detectors!

A once per hour beep sounds a lot like a low battery indicator -- what else do you have running on batteries around the house?

Some things to check:

Internet/Phone - specifically in my area, Verizon FIOS often has a battery backup so that phones don't go out when the power goes out in order to better simulate POTS Actually, in many recent FIOS installations they haven't bothered because people wouldn't bother to replace the batteries.
Burglar Alarm
UPS - Typically attached to a computer


What is the proper way to vent a dryer through a crawlspace?

The "proper" way to vent the dryer, is to go out the wall.  This could be the wall of the garage, or the wall of the crawlspace. Though if you're venting through the wall of the crawlspace, you'll want to make sure the vent is the proper distance away from any crawlspace vents.

You're also supposed to use rigid metal duct, not the flexible crap. There are also limits on the vent length, which is reduced by bends in the duct. Check manufacturer installation instructions for vent requirements, and restrictions.

In the best case, venting into the crawlspace is blowing moisture and lint into the crawlspace. Worst case, you're pumping combustion byproducts into the space as well.


"1 inch" with an additional trip through the planer - ie, it's not stock. For that matter, what is "stock" for various sizes varies with vendor, over time, etc. - the place I used to get hardwood in central NY planed 4/4 to 13/16" unless you asked for a different thickness, so 3/4 would not be "stock" there.

With rare exceptions any lumber thinner than 1 inch is made by planing from 1 inch (actually "4/4 rough") in practice. A well equipped lumberyard (not home cheapo) can custom-plane it for a nominal fee, otherwise you are going to need access to a planer to get this size.


What Alternatives are there to Toilet Wax Rings?

First off, can you replace the old rough flange or add a 1/4" extension plate to smooth it out? If not, can you file it down a bit and smooth out the rough spots? I've used a number of the seals pictured below and have much more luck with them than with the wax rings. Good luck


How can I temporarily adhere plastic conduit to a brick wall?

Try some 3M Extreme mounting tape http://amzn.to/2h7cIi6
If there is any leftover tape on the wall when you remove it, use some adhesive remover on it.

The other option would be to attach some legs on the pipe so that it can be physically supported by the ground. Or wire/rope it to anything that protrudes from the brick wall.


Can air in a Hotwater tank, prevent the pressure release valve from working?

Air in the tank won't prevent the valve from opening. But if an electric water heater it can cause damage to the element. Just don't turn the water heater on until it is plumbed in then open a hot water tap and turn the supply to the water heater on. When the tank is full the tap will quit spitting air and run normally. After this is done it is safe to turn the heat on.


What could cause the battery in a smoke detector to heat up?

Wow- A smoke detector that could cause a fire..

It is very difficult to say

It could be a fault in the fire alarm- short circuit that caused the battery to heat up to a cooking point.
It could be a chemical fault in the battery where atmospheric pressure and chemical imbalances caused by some impurity during production caused the battery to heat up at a certain point of its life.

Either way

The safest option is to replace both and remove all doubt!

   eg ever hear about the exploding iPods...  :)


Sometimes you've just got to roll up your sleeves and go to work...


Sheath is too short! Can I finish in EMT?

Technically it would be a nipple and the code does allow for certain liberties in nipples such as larger fill requirements and no derating of conductors. I wouldn't call a short piece of SE "unsheathing to use as individual conductor". Also consider the alternative, which would be to splice say THWN to the SE. What would be worse? The small piece of SE extended or a splice where you have to leave accessible to maintain the splice, since splices are 80% of all electrical conductor problems.

In short it's all a matter of following code to the letter or the actual intent of the code. Personally I would just as soon reduce the number of splices over any other alternative.


How do I break a shower tray silicone seal with limited access?

I use dental floss , it will cut through just about any silicone adhesive/ sealant. Slip it in the crack and pull back and forth. I do this to remove equipment plaques on machines when updates are needed.


Electrical: Wiring a dimmer switch in a circuit with fixture, outlet, another switch powering 2 other fixtures

Did I mix up wiring somewhere?

Yes.

  All are working, BUT: Now, the outlet and light/fan are not hot until the dimmer switch is turned on. Furthermore the outlet and fan are reduced by the dimmer.

Apparently, you wired the outlet and fan in series with the dimmer.

Re-check your wiring and make sure the outlet and fan are fed by the hot feed in the circuit NOT from the load side of the dimmer.

Good luck and stay safe!


Water can run for some distance inside a ceiling before finding a path to visibility, so the leak might not be where you think it is. Check all the radiators above the first floor for visible leaks or wetness.

The leak could be very small and intermittent, for example dripping only when the system first comes on and warms up, then drying off before you see it on the pipe. Try this -- wrap all suspect pipes with clean paper towels or similar tissue and periodically check for staining.

Another possibility is that the stain isn't from the heating system at all, but is the result of a bog standard domestic spill near the radiator, and some of the liquid found its way through the pipe hole in the floor before it was cleaned up.

Getting rid of the stain is complicated by the fact that the puddle above the ceiling is larger and wetter than the visible stain. You want to make sure it's completely dry before applying stain remover and paint.


I figured it out.

Th new GFCI reversed the line and load terminals from what the old GFCI had.  All I did was to reverse the white and black (hot) wires and everything works fine.

I hope this will help others out in the future.

Matt


Summing up some comments so this question has an answer.

If the hose valve is always on there's no way for pressure to build up inside the hose.  If there was an increase in pressure, water would back up into the house plumbing to equalize the pressure.  If there was a backflow preventing valve an increase in pressure would cause that valve to drain water until the pressure equalized.

So, the water increasing in pressure is not the issue.  The hose material heating up and becoming more flexible is probably the cause.  If that is the cause, installing a pressure regulator on the hose could help because it would reduce the starting pressure of the water.  In other words, if your hose pressure is at 50psi and that is fine for a cold hose but causes fatigue in a hot hose, then a regulator could bring that pressure down to 30psi.  Maybe a hot hose can deal with 30psi just fine.

This would mean less pressure at the point of use and probably less water flow but you didn't state what the hose is for.  The best solution is going to be to replace the hose with something more suited to heat and sunlight like an outdoor PEX or UV safe PVC.  Something like irrigation pipe is not that expensive.


Improve HVAC in single upstairs room with vaulted ceiling

I would adjust the dampers so the ones in the smaller rooms are not fully open this will put more flow to the larger room. Things to think about that can reduce flow to a room is the bottom of the door jamb tight to the carpet or floor this can act like a damper once the room is pressurized the flow will be reduced with the damper open. If this is the case trim the bottom door, I state this because the return air duct is usually in a common area for each floor. Your HVAC guy is correct a larger room with less dead air space (attic above) will take longer to cool, BUT a properly size duct(s) and damper control they can be setup to cool at similar rates.


To me that's a no-brainer, for several reasons. It's much better protected in the wall, and it's not in the way of shelving, cabinets, wall surfacing, etc.
The NEC requires that all cabling be out of harm's way. Most interpretations prohibit surface-mounting of wiring for that reason. I prefer to run cables through the rafters (over the wall), and then through the top plate(s) and down the side of a stud.