The lock barrel is known as a Euro cylinder (there's a photo on this page showing Euro cylinder locks booth side and end on).

The numbers XX/YY relate to dimensions (in millimetres) of the lock when viewed from the side. The dimensions are measured from one face of the lock to the fixing hole in the centre, then from the hole to the other face.

You can remove the lock, measure it, and replace it while you wait for the new one to arrive - it only takes a matter of seconds with the key to remove the cylinder. However, the bad news for you, since you say that you've not got a key, is that you generally need a key to be able to easily take the cylinder out. As you can see in the top of the photo on the link, the cam is slightly offset when the key is withdrawn, so it doesn't just slide out once you've removed the fixing bolt.


Is there aluminum wiring in my vent fan?

Sometimes with stranded wire, they will tin the ends with solder.  I would guess this is the case here since you're right that aluminum is not usually used. I think the only reason they do this is to keep the ends from fraying and keep it neat.

You can check for sure by stripping new ends.

I have never seen stranded aluminum, or anything less than 12awg used (most house wire is 14awg copper, which is a bit smaller). You can see in this picture the aluminum is slightly bigger:

I would also be very surprised to see aluminum wire since it requires special wire nuts (co/alr rated) and an anti-oxidant paste (eg, Noalox) to connect.

If it's just tinned copper, you can twist and wire nut to a regular standed wire, just treat it like a normal copper wire.


Should I upgrade my evaporator coil when a I get a new furnace?

You need about 1 ton of cooling per 400 sq/ft.
At 1,400 square feet you will be undersized by about 1.5 tons. If you have excellent insulation everywhere then 2 tons might work but you will likely notice that your unit is constantly working on high for hours on end.
Also, from https://www.cooltoday.com/blog/is-it-bad-if-my-evaporator-coils-and-condenser-coils-dont-match

For example, an evaporator coil that is smaller than the condenser coils might, in some cases, provide better dehumidification but it can’t cool the home as well. On the other hand, an evaporator coil that’s larger than the condenser coils will cool the home well but will remove little to no moisture from the air.


Space marked 1 appears to have a label indicating you cannot use that space. That is common in panels that have stab limits, meaning the piece that opposing breakers clip onto can only handle the heat caused by up to a given limit. This limit would be found on the panel cover. It appears your bottom 100A and 20A may exceed stab limits too.
Space marked 2 is only a single pole, you would only get 120v from that space alone.
Your overall load is a concern, with a 100A in and a 100A out, but it seems like you aren't experiencing overload currrently, you may not if you add the hot tub. Likely the tub doesn't draw a full 50A.
Making space to accommodate a two-pole 50 can be made by substituting a breaker similar to a q25020c (upc 783643194984) in place of adjacent 20A breakers. I can't make a specific recommendation because you got tape gumming up critical information and you haven't provided.
But the biggest concern you got here is you appear to have breakers incompatible with the  Listing of the panel. You haven't provided specific information, but I have never seen an electrical panel that is NRTL (UL, CSA ,ETL or similar) approved for use with Siemens, Challenger, and Eaton circuit breakers. You should check the information on the panel cover and arrange to get breakers replaced that are compatible.
Also I can see a couple of places that it appears a ground wire and neutral are terminated in a single lug hole. I have seen panels that the listing and labeling allows multiple grounds, but never one that allows multiple wires with a neutral termination.


Drywall anchors are used in vertical walls and the rating is based on a combination of shear load (downward on the screw and anchor) and some tension load outward (based on an assumption of a load close to the wall).

Ceiling mounts are pure tension loads downward and the weak spot is the drywall, not the anchor. A thin diameter of crumbly plaster around the anchor is all that holds them in. Even flared, they form a narrow cone that is easily compromised.

For ceiling mounting, try very hard to find framing members. If that is not possible, use anchors that have significant perpendicular members, such as molly bolts or toggles. I favor strap toggles like these

But I really urge screwing into framing if at all possible.

 Images and links are examples only, not endorsements of products or sources.


Unfortunately this has quite a number of defects in it already, including a panel in a clothes closet, a panel in a bathroom, and 2 feeders (service laterals, really) to the same structure.
As far as splitting the laterals below the meter, that is just a matter of splicing space, and you will be able to resolve that with an additional box or gutter below or on the opposite side of the pole from the meter.
Normally this type of splitting calls for a main breaker at the meter, and then supply breakers to each lateral feeder that is not rated for the ampacity of the main breaker.  (But still, dual feeders to the house would be problematic.)
Anyway, the upshot of all that is that you are already at 2/0.  If you spend a bit more to take it to 4/0, then that wire would be legal at 200A.


Those are counterfeit GFCIs
I would chide you for being "cheap", but the fact is, many of the dangerous or counterfeit items on Amazon are being priced same as quality items.  Further, counterfeiters have found an exploit that gives you a fake even if you order a "Ships from and sold by Amazon" item.
As a result, do not buy electrical equipment on Amazon..... and I gather I don't need to tell you not to buy it on the other shady mail-order sites like eBay, Banggood, DealExtreme, Wish, etc.
Jeff Bezos is firmly committed to making Amazon a "platform to connect sellers to buyers" - in other words, eBay. Further, Bezos has thrown open Amazon's warehousing/fulfillment/delivery system wide open to any comer.  Industries use it, eBay sellers use it, and if the item is also sold on Amazon, it ships with Prime.
So it's a gory mess, and it's impossible to give any guidance as to how to buy on Amazon safely.  Best advice: don't.
They all need to be ripped out
.... sent back and replaced with ones from a competent home store.  Send. Them. Back. Don't you dare let the counterfeiter keep your money! I know most consumers don't bother with refunds in most cases, but please do with counterfeits - it deters counterfeiters and helps Amazon identify the bad guys.  If the return window has expired, call up Amazon - they're more reachable than you'd think, and yell and scream - you'll get it.
If you don't want to walk into a Home Depot, they and Lowes do curbside pickup, and both will happily mail-order for you, and they ship it from their own supply chain, which are under quality controls.
because aside from being unsafe, they're not legal. NEC 110.2, equipment must be approved.


Now you know why varnish is rarely used anymore. If it is pure varnish/shellac, then damage to the wood is likely.  Before sanding and refinishing, the nuclear option is to try to rub it out with denatured alcohol. The alcohol will dissolve the varnish and redistribute or remove it. You can then touch up the varnish carefully.

If it is lacquer, then use lacquer thinner.  Remember, varnish and lacquer are not the same.

This is somewhat successful in some stains.


Which insulation for gap between plasterboard and subfloor?

Hard density foam board is probably your best option.  You can get 1.5" panels and cut them to size and get an R-7.5.

You could take batt insulation and compress it but batt insulation works best when not compressed and compressing it down to 1.5" would yield a lower R value than the rigid foam:


How often would a chest freezer need to be defrosted in a very humid tropical area?

It depends on how often the freezer is opened and if it has any air leaks, you can go forever without having to defrost if the freezer is never opened and does not have any air leaks.

In the UK, frost free freezers are now common, they are greate!


Running PEX line through PVC then thread into end

One way would be to run your pex cable up the PVC pipe and put a PEX/ female hose connector on the end of the pex. (see below)

Another alternative would be to connect the pex to your PVC pipe at the bottom with this type of connector

and then at the top of the PVC pipe connect a female hose fitting

Your PC pipe would actually be under pressure at this point.
These fittings are available at home stores and plumbing supply stores.


Can wireless ceiling fan controls work without a direct wire to a wall switch?

There are a number of retro fit kits to make pull chain fans wireless.  Just search for Ceiling Fan Remote Control Kit.  Most big box hardware stores have them in stock as well.  The wall switch will not be used but you can mount the remote on the wall next to the switch.


What could cause my tankless water heater to make a knocking sound?

I have the same water heater and those knock noises are the flow valve actuators turning on and off...completely normal.


Is this DIY pull up bar and dips station structurally sound and is it a good solution?

This is not as structurally sound as it could/should be. With such large dimensions between corners, adding some diagonal bracing will improve the strength by a substantial margin. As I typed this, I see Ed Beal has added the equivalent in a comment.

Triangles are your friends.


I suspect that you need to:

remove all possible trim and rings from the top.
unscrew a hex set-screw from the underside (see blue arrow) that clamps the unit to the deck by pressing up against the "hold-down plate" (see yellow arrow).
once loose, the hold down plate will slide away from the faucet body, allowing the faucet body to drop out from the deck, striking you in the nose, eye, or lip/front tooth.


Is it normal for caulk to let go around my new home's tub and kitchen sink?

The answer is yes but with a caveat.

The caulk was not correct for the application.
Not enough caulk was used.
The caulk was an inferior make.
The caulk was placed "outside" the gap, not binding in it.
Incredibly high variances of temperature or humidity.
The caulk was messed with.   When cleaning an area you cannot just scrub hard against caulk.   Eventually you will loosen even the best caulk job by pushing/scrubbing on it.

Each of these could easily cause an issue within a year.  If the builder used a good silicone caulk which should have been used in these areas and that said caulk failed in that short of time it is most certainly one of the issues above or a combination of them.


Can a 15 amp electrical switch be used to replace a push button switch for garage door opener?

A switch can be used for any voltage from it's rating or less, voltage wise. Thing is, a garage door opener button is momentary, where a wall switch is maintained. There is the possibility of damage if you leave a switch in the on position too long in an application like this. I wouldn't do it.

The problem you have is that someone ran this low-voltage wire in the box with the line voltage wiring. This assumes the wiring is something like thermostat wire or what came with the opener.

I would remove the wiring from that box and mount a regular opener button to the wall.

And @gregmac makes a good point. If this opener is newer, as in maybe ten years or less, then a regular switch may not work, or at least it will not give you all the functions that the opener offers.


Should I replace a 50A oven breaker with a 40A breaker if that's adequate?

First of all, note that if your current wiring is in good condition, you don't need to remove it to install a 4 wire cable.  Instead, you can retrofit a ground by using an appropriately sized wire (depending on your breaker choice), running along any route you please, that connects the stove to the panel it's served from, or to any ground wire at least that big that goes to that service panel (i.e. the wire from your ground rods).
As far as the breaker size, check your new range's instructions: if they say it requires a 40A breaker, then yes, you need to change it to that.  If instead it says you must use a minimum of a 40A breaker, it should also list a maximum (which will almost certainly be 50A), and in that case you're free to use either.
As far as the wire size, you could downgrade to a lower gauge if you're using a 40A breaker, but since you already have 3 of the 4 wires sized for 50A, personally I'd recommend sticking with the current 50A wire and adding a 50A ground wire as well -- that way if you (or whoever buys your house someday) wants a more powerful range in the future, you'll be ready.  It's always allowed to use bigger wire, so putting wire that's good for 50A on a 40A breaker is no problem.


Will plywood between foam board insulation be prone to moisture condensation?

Where in the world do you live? Most earthquake zones are temperate climates in the US. It sounds like your sealing may create more of a problem as you will end up with a double barrier or even 3 if the house is wrapped trapping moisture.
The Pacific Northwest in the US is one of the cooler earthquake zones but also the wettest and this sandwich would setup a great home for mold. The insulation in the walls with an additional layer of plywood would help seal. I think the extra layer of foam is asking for trouble long term.


Powering 2 switches from 1 switch, legal? (not 3-way)

I purposely left out a big piece of information as I really didn't want to add another visible switch. While I probably could have used my original idea, like I said, I knew it was weird. I also began thinking about the wifi switches and the fact that when the master switch was turned to on from off that those switches may or may not default to their last on/off setting. Possibly always starting as off, requiring turning lights on from app each time. At the very least always causing a delay in the lights turning on. I hadn't yet filled the drywall work from when I first added the recessed light. Also I didn't want the switch in the closet. Contacted Lutron, no dual LED dimmers, no plans to make one. Thought about tinkering with the Maestro dual dimmer for incandescent/halogen and adding a resistor to the load, but its just more trouble than its worth.
So I gave in, and just added another switch.
Thanks for all the help


Is it dangerous to use polyisocyanurate without covering it with drywall?

Polyisocyanurate, AKA: PIR, polyiso, or ISO –Wiki

During a fire, polyisocyanurate can release a considerably higher level of toxins than other insulating materials. Other than PVC (which will release dioxin), I can't think of a worse building material to inhale fumes from. Other types of foam might be 'better' but all of them should have a fire barrier. I haven't installed ISO in 20 years, others are much cheaper (like, half the price) and nearly the same R-value (~5 vs. 6).

  A 2011 study of fire toxicity of insulating materials at the University of Central Lancashire's Centre for Fire and Hazard Science studied PIR and other commonly used materials under more realistic and wide ranging conditions representative of a wider range of fire hazard, observing that most fire deaths resulted from toxic product inhalation. The study evaluated the degree to which toxic products were released, looking at toxicity, time-release profiles, and lethality of doses released, in a range of flaming, non-flaming, and poorly ventilated fires, and concluded that PIR generally released a considerably higher level of toxic products than the other insulating materials studied (PIR > PUR > EPS > PHF; glass and stone wools also studied).


Screw sequence for Wood Subfloor to Metal Joists

I suspect that you're asking about interval (spacing distance) rather than sequence (order of installation). Sequence usually doesn't matter at all. Interval is somewhat subjective since this is a barn and not a dining room, so minor noise isn't really a concern. Here are my suggestions based on experience and not from any particular specification:

Minimum: 3 per joist - just enough to hold things down well
Maximum: Every 12" on the ends (5 screws) and 16" in the field (4 screws) - plenty to prevent virtually any movement

Consider using construction adhesive, which will really lock things together. I think it's overkill in a barn, though.

Yes, sheets should be staggered, ideally lapping two joists. Butt ends should never align if possible. This is to improve overall rigidity since the tongue-and-groove connection will offer support to adjacent sheets at the butt joints.


Replacing my light/fan/heater/timer with a light/fan/nightlight in the bathroom, with another light just to make things interesting

Gang together all the white wires loop the hot wire to bottom of all switches and you should be left with three wires to attach to the tops of each switch


Do I have to check if my floor is level before installing new linoleum (from a roll, not tiles)?

You likely need flat, not level.

And for that, all you really need is some sort of a long, straight edge.  A yard stick works pretty well ... just place it down anywhere you think there might be a dip or bump, and if the yard stick is flat against the floor its whole length, you're fine.

As for the implications of not having it flat, I'm not sure for linoleum.  For floating floors it's really hard to get everything to click together, and you'll end up with spots that bounce a little too much when you walk over it.  You can actually have a little imperfection, which will be mentioned on the package (eg, 1/8" over 4')

As for not having it level, things set on the ground will roll away.


What concerns should I have installing a HVAC unit and ducts in a home that's never had it?

The easy challenge is finding somewhere to install the internal half (blower and coils) of the unit. You need to have space, access to service it, a place to run the lines to the outside unit, and power. Power is typically 220, and will need a dedicated circuit, so you'll need to be able to run another line from the breaker panel and have enough additional capacity on the main breaker. Finally, the largest challenge is running the ducts to each of the rooms. In an older home, the joists will frequently be solid and cannot be cut to pass the ducts, so you are left with using the craw space beneath the home, attic space, or enclose them below the ceiling/along the walls.

One final consideration is that a home built this long ago without an hvac unit will likely have little insulation or weather stripping. This means a lot of the energy used to get your home to the right temperature will go right out the walls. To do this right, you could be looking at a situation with all of your exterior walls are opened up to insulate, windows are replaced to prevent drafts, and lots of interior walls and ceilings are opened up to run the lines.

Depending on the home, and especially the layout, it could be cheaper to buy a similar home that already has an hvac installed.


The sump pail is there precisely because you can't prevent water from coming in, at least under the slab. It's unclear whether your home has foundation waterproofing installed.

It's also unclear why two sumps couldn't keep up. In all but the worst scenarios, one pump should be adequate, and it should only run every few minutes at most. If you have pumps running constantly due to moderate rainfall, you have bigger concerns. Is the landscaping around your home sloped the wrong way? Does your neighborhood's topography result in heavy flow through your yard? Is your home located in a lake or pond?

I do appreciate that you thought to mention the makeup of your ceiling. That successfully conveyed the scope of your problem. Unfortunately, a sump pump won't help if the water gets that deep.


Roof truss with Odd 2x4 T-Shaped Reinforcement. Why is that there?

Those are stiffeners, as you suspected. Large roof systems require stabilization of those long members. The truss plan provides schedules for the carpenters to follow in adding them on-site. It makes transport simpler.
I don't think it would jeopardize the integrity of the truss by shifting them flush to one side of the truss member, but you'd need an engineer to give you legal approval. Just be sure to nail them at least as often as they are now with 12d nails or better.
Of course, you could always remove them and replace them as they are now after repairs have been made.


Replacement Options for T12 Four light fluorescent light fixture

You can go T12, T8 or LED, and 2, 3 or 4 lamps.  That is decided by which ballast you buy.

Instant, or Rapid/Programmed Start.

This is decided by the wiring of your fixture.  Each bulb end has 2 pins because there's a small filament in each end of the bulb.  Rapid or Programmed Start ballasts use both pins to preheat those filaments for an easy start and longer lamp life - so they have 2 wires to each end of each bulb.  Instant start ballasts do not, so they only have 1 wire. If you have instant-start, stay with it - otherwise you may need to replace the lamp sockets.

T12 vs T8 vs LED

You probably have inventory of T12 bulbs, but they are basically obsolete.  T8 bulbs are inexpensive, more efficient, have much better color rendition (typically starting at 80% CRI) and come in several light colors (3500K, 5100K etc.)   Edit: since I wrote this I have started fitting 90CRI T8 tubes, readily available for under  $2 each, they are marvelous.  You don't see it in the tubes, but rather, in the stuff being lit up.

LEDs come in 2 flavors: "direct wire" (rewire the fixture for 120V on the lamp ends) or "keep the ballast". (no rewiring, the smarter LED emulates a bulb). The trouble with the second kind is you must maintain the ballast, and it must be of a certain type (i.e. instant start). With direct wire, you remove the ballast entirely and wire 120V to the lamp end(s). Some "direct wire" LEDs take the 120V on one end of the lamp (the other end is a dummy) - that can be a problem in a fixture with 1-wire sockets.

2, 3 or 4 bulbs

T8 bulbs are generally brighter than T12 bulbs.  Look at the bulb rating in lumens, but multiply by the ballast factor (a percentage) - they make ballasts designed to underdrive or even overdrive the bulb's rating.  Often when lighting is carefully designed, they replace 4 bulbs with 3 or 2, because T8's are brighter and/or because they found the space was "over-lit".

LED lumens are lower, but they're worth a lot more, because they're all aimed in the right direction - unlike fluorescents which waste a lot of energy lighting the backside of a reflector.

Sourcing

Changing ballasts is rather straightforward and I pay between $12 and $30 on 1000bulbs.com or other sources.  I aim for middle to top shelf quality - my first choice is GE, and I find good deals on boxes of new ballasts on eBay. Edit: 4-lamp ballasts are readily available.  The tactic of getting 3-lamp ballasts and only fitting 3 tubes works well with T8, as they are somewhat brighter.

I have also been doing great on eBay buying new or lightly used ballasts that were pulled from newish fixtures for LED upgrades.  As low as $4 each.

I regularly see direct-wire LED replacement 4 foot "tubes" for under $10, often from 1000bulbs.com or superbrightLEDs.com.

It's pretty easy work if you don't mess with the lamp sockets - just get a big bag of "blue" wire-nuts, a stripper, and go to town.  If your fixture is hard-wired, you must install "disconnecting means" - I power down, install half the connector on the hot lines, then power up and do everything else.

When I replace lamp socket ends ("tombstones"), I pay about 60-70 cents each for those, and they are fairly standard.  But the labor gets pretty high.


Can a Ground Wire be attatched to a nail in wood stud?

Install equipment in real junction boxes

I've done a lot of wiring and I cannot imagine how you would get a ground wire anywhere near a 2x4.  Your wires (including ground) are doing one of two things:  traveling inside a conduit (pipe) into a junction box, or travel inside a cable and the whole cable enters a junction box, so ground is inside the junction box too.  The junction box entirely encloses the wires.  How would a wire get outside a junction box to reach a 2x4 and a nail???

And then I realized... you're not using a junction box, are you?  Use a junction box.  You really, really want a junction box for 240V power such as is used by a heater.

Here's an example of a Steel City brand metal junction box. There are many kinds.  This particular one looks like

a new-work box (before drywall goes up) with flanges to make it rather easy to attach to a 2x4.
It has an offset to allow for standard drywall thickness
standard threaded holes to mount standard yokes (switches, receptacles, thermostats etc.) The yoke then has screws to mount a standard cover.
Is extra-wide and deep  for extra wire space
Has built-in clamps specifically for NM cable, and a few knockouts for anything that takes a knockout (e.g. conduit).
has a green ground screw for pigtailing a ground. This only attaches 1 wire, but that wire is then wire-nutted to the other ground wires.  Inside the box obviously.

I presume you'll want an old-work type box for fitting into existing drywall or onto an existing 2x4, etc.  The big-box stores have a selection, but a proper electrical supply house will have a better selection.

All electrical connections must be inside a junction box.  It is not legal or safe to splice any wire or fit any device outside a junction box.  Additionally, every junction box must be accessible without dismantling the building.  You must be able to remove the junction box cover without needing any tools except to unscrew the cover screws.

Retrofit a real ground

You do realize as of 2014, it is perfectly legal to retrofit grounds.  Just run an Actual Ground Wire from the place you are trying to ground (or anywhere connected to it by an appropriately sized ground wire, i.e. either end of those two ground wires) to anywhere on your equipment grounding system (downstream of the service panel) where the ground wire back to the panel is >= the size of this ground wire, or anywhere on your grounding electrode system i.e. the bare wire from your service panel to the water pipe, ground rod, wherever the panel gets its grounding from.

Do not simply ground to a water pipe, the goal isn't just to reach ground (that only helps with natural electricity like ESD, whose source is earth) -- the goal is mainly to reach the panel's equipotential bonding point, so that human-made electricity can be returned to its human-supplied source, i.e. the neutral wire.  Electricity flows in loops and electricity must be returned from whence it came.


Water accumulating on the side of our house

Start keeping a log or diary of all communications regarding this project. Record every phone call, letter, and visit. Write down who and when, and what you said and what they said.
Call the original contractor first. Tell him this is not satisfactory and he needs to fix it. If he won't come when the weather has been wet, you can demonstrate standing water with your garden hose.
Naturally he will be reluctant to devote more time and money to your needs. He may try to tell you that this standing water is no problem. Do not accept this. You will probably need iron-hard sales resistance. Maybe you will be lucky and your original contractor is honorable and wants to preserve his reputation.
If the original contractor absolutely will not fix this then tell him you will hire somebody else to fix it and send him the bill. Then hire somebody else to fix it and send the original contractor a bill. If it comes to this, you should ask over on Legal SE how to present the bill to the original contractor.


No neutral in metal switch box for three-way switches in an older 1930's home

No, you cannot bootleg neutral from the very rickety ground BX provides.
It worked for 80 years because normal switches don't need neutral.   You are introducing a new wrinkle: a smart switch that does.  Here is how classical 3-way circuits work.  Remember current flows in loops, and the route may differ, certainly as will the color codes.

Note that neither 3-way switch uses neutral, and the "remote" 3-way doesn't even have neutral anywhere near. Remember: installers are stuck with the colors that cables are manufactured with, so white wires may not be be neutral.  Travelers are the ones that land on brass screws, they can be any color. I prefer to mark wires with colored tape to indicate their actual function, but apparently, I'm weird.
The problem is you want to put the smart switch somewhere it can't go.  You need to rethink.
Generally, you handle this by carefully selecting a smart-switch master that goes at the switch location that does have a neutral. Then you either accept a plain switch at the remote location, or use a matching smart switch "remote".  In the latter case, you re-task the 3 wires to be whatever you need for the remote to work.


Concrete for the foundation base (aka footing) poured into mud and standing water will not cure properly will be not suitable for use as a footing. You would be well to do one of:

Wait for the water to evaporate and/or soak into the ground.
Pump out the water.
Dig an additional trench away from the low end to drain the water away from the footing area.

Then let the soil base dry out. You will have to remove the area of the footing with the punky concrete and re-pour it in proper conditions. All this needs to be done before you start building a foundation on top of the footing.


Using stop valves to adjust water flow in a sink

That's entirely acceptable, as far as I know.


Convert a switched receptacle to a non switched receptacle

Not as long as you have at least one switched outlet. There's a difference between outlets and receptacles. In your case the switched outlet is the overhead lights you added. No other provisions are required.


Is there a way to locate a receptacle closed behind drywall?

The code states that the outlets need to be no farther apart than 12' and within 6' of a door. If you had more than what code required, that makes it a little more difficult. If you find one at the door then go 12' from there, literally measuring the wall length you should find one at every 12'. If you have a space larger than that you may have a covered receptacle. Your building plan should reflect this, referring to my comment about code requirement. Or it should show how many you have, if it has more than code would require. I presume the electrician had something to go by to reflect your needs.

With that out of the way, and you have a spot you suspect there is a covered receptacle there, use a straight edge, or anything with a straight edge that is 4' or maybe longer. Run it at the level you suspect where the outlet is and if there is a covered outlet, there will be a noticeable hump in the wall. For the screws will draw the drywall pretty well to the neighboring studs but obviously not so where the covered outlet is. If you find one, the highest spot will be the outlet.


Just align everything and tap it back into place with a block of wood laid over the top. Work slowly and watch for misalignment, working from the end that's still in place.

It should go back in without much trouble unless it buckled because of severe swelling due to moisture. In that case, wait until it dries out and try then.

I'd use galvanized, coated, or stainless steel trim-head screws to re-fasten. Nails may not hold well in that old framing. Screws with pilot-points will help prevent splitting.


How should I install underfloor heating over OSB subfloor?

Skip the OSB - attach the tubing to the insulation. XPS insulation plays well in concrete/cement applications. OSB Does NOT. I can't imagine what lead you to this particular "non-traditional" idea, but run away from it before you find your whole floor disintegrating under your feet.

Responding to comment - the insulation glued to the slab should not have any appreciable gaps - if it does, fill them with more insulation. If it is, in fact, XPS (extruded - as it should be - closed cell foam, smooth-surfaced, usually pink, blue or sometimes green) rather than EPS (expanded - crumbly white stuff) it stands up to foot traffic just fine. Tubing clips are typically screwed right into it. If you have glued EPS to the slab, then you'd be well served to buy the thinnest sheets of XPS you can find (1" or 25mm is typically the thinnest) and place that over the EPS, without leaving any gaps this time. It usually has a tongue and groove edge treatment to help with that.

These are folks to whom my relationship is "just a happy customer" with plenty of detailed information about installing radiant heat in a manner that will last. I installed mine over 2" XPS, walked all over it running tubing and reinforcing steel, and didn't make so much as a dent in the insulation. That page has links to both a written manual and a video.


Simple light switch wiring upgrade to new switch - NO NEUTRAL

Neutral Required
Many (not all) smart switches, timers, motion sensors, etc. require a neutral. That is because they need to get power even when the switched device is off. Some older switches were designed to leak power through the device even when "off", but that does not work well with LED lights, so needing a neutral at the switch has become more common in the last few years. Current code in many areas now requires neutral to be available at switches for exactly this reason, but many older houses don't have neutral at many switches.
Your existing switch has hot (black) and switched hot (white).
Your new switch has hot (black), switched hot (red), neutral (white) and ground (green). You have ground available in the box (the uninsulated wire) but you don't have neutral.
There are two basic ways a switch can be wired:

Panel -> Switch -> Device

If this is the case, you will either have neutral in the box (connected to the neutral wire coming back from the device) or have it nearby (i.e., neutral didn't actually get into the box but is right next to it), since the hot & neutral from the panel need to be together.

Panel -> Device -> Switch

This is a switch loop. Switch loops are a great way to avoid extra wires (saving a little money in installation) by only routing hot & switched hot to the switch and not bothering neutral (until the recent code changes, that is). It looks like you have a switch loop. With a switch loop that doesn't include a neutral, the usual fix is to run a new cable from the device that includes hot, switched hot & neutral. If your wiring is in conduit then you can run just a neutral wire. However, since one of the existing wires is white, that would indicate that the wires are part of a cable and not individual wires because white as an individual wire should only be used for neutral and it is only permitted for a different use in a cable because "all 2 wire cables are black/white".
As Harper noted, there is a way to make this "work" without any additional wires (I won't tell you how) but it is not approved by code and not a good idea.


How can I remove paint from an indoor brick wall?

From what I understand, sandblasting works best, but requires serious machinery/produces huge amounts of dust and noise. Next up is "dry ice blasting" (pellets of dry ice are shot at the wall where they explode, and remove the paint). This is also loud, expensive, and can damage the bricks. You can also just sand the wall with various hand tools (VERY labor intensive).


This gave me a chuckle. (No offense intended)

Is the big steel beam running perpendicular to the joists a load
bearing beam?

It is a beam and the photo shows a load on it, floor joists, and all of that on a post. So YES  it is load bearing beam.
I will leave it to others more knowledgeable and eloquent to explain further.


The bigger problem is multi-wire branch circuits

Looking at the subpanel, I see 32 "circuits" in use, and I only count 15 neutrals.  And pretty much every other hot wire is red.

This is, without a doubt, a multi-wire branch circuit or MWBC.  Now, these are not a defect if done properly - but they are very vulnerable to being done wrong, and that's when they set your neutral wire on fire.

There will be a red, black and white all in the same cable.  The red and black must be put on opposite "poles" in the panel, and  they must measure 240V between them.

However, we also see a ton of double-stuff breakers - breakers designed to squeeze 2 circuits into 1 space.  These are super vulnerable to being done wrong with MWBCs.  If red+black from the same cable are landed on the same breaker, (which seems like a natural thing to do right?) that will cause the problem.

That doesn't mean the person did... but there's plenty here that makes me nervous  Suffice it to say, the MWBCs should be checked for correctness, and placed on handle-tied (quadplex) breakers as modern Code requires.  (the handle-tied breakers force you to "think correctly" about the MWBC phasing).

Also, I have my suspicions that some of these breakers are the wrong type for this panel, I could be wrong.  I've never seen BR breakers with no writing on them and no colored handle.

I also don't like how they're all 20s.  Are all those wires really #12 copper wire?  Any #14 Cu or #12 Al, and that breaker needs to be 15A.

Lack of neutral-ground separation

First, what I see here looks a lot like 2 neutral bars.  How do you tell the difference?  Well first, the steel frame of the service panel is always grounded.  Some bars stand up on insulators, others do not.  Bars which are non-insulated and bolted direct to the panel steel are always ground bars.  Ones stood up on insulators can go either way.

I also see a strap connecting the 2 neutral bars - note it goes left to right just below the second row of breakers.  That leads me to believe both are neutral bars, and that makes sense - if this panel were maxed out with double-stuffed single circuits, you'd need all those for neutrals!  (you can't double-tap 2 neutrals on 1 screw).

So where do grounds get attached?  Accessory ground bars that you pay extra (like $6 extra) for. These bolt directly to the metal frame, and like I said, that means they can only be ground bars.

When we look at the panel in this light, I see only neutrals on the neutral bar.  In fact, I see precious few grounds at all! It's possible this panel predates the common use of ground wires.  Or a mad installer simply cut them all off.

The lack of grounds is another issue.

You should certainly identify the maker of the panel and go get accessory ground bars for that panel (an electrical supply house who deals in that company or its successor can help identify the right ground bar).  Using the intended brand means the ground bars will line up on the pre-drilled holes, for easy installation.

I'm not into brand loyalty, but competitor breakers are not physically compatible - they seem to fit, but they don't.


Can 2 - 6" flex ducts be combined into a single 8" rigid duct

Considering how much worse flexible duct is for airflow .vs. smoothwall, I think you'll be fine with 8"; better than it was, for certain.

Assuming real-world installation, this paper is quite enlightening (figure 2 also appears to show that 8" is slightly more than twice as good as 6" even under ideal conditions, where there's less difference between flex and smoothwall) but figure 3 is very enlightening, and that's for what's considered a "good, nominal" flex install.

Texas A&M airflow & pressure in flex ducts

Figures 4, 5 & 6 are downright scary.


How can I reinforce a wall mounted ikea shelf?

After reading through the product info and the assembly instructions, I'd say the 99lbs refers to the max load of the unit itself. For one thing, they don't know what you're attaching to so they couldn't spec out a max load for the units effective bearing weight. And two, the shear load of a lag into a stud through the little metal brackets supplied would be quite a bit more than 99lbs per connection so it has to refer to the box itself. As far as your responsibility goes for the installation, I would want to see you catch at least two studs just to be safe and then use a drywall anchor like these in the remaining two locations as per the instructions. That way your unit will be pulled tight to the wall evenly across the length but the studs will still be bearing the bulk of the load. As far as being able to tell the condition of your framing, if you can tighten down a screw to the point where it pulls everything snug without stripping out, that's the best you can do without stripping the drywall and having a look. If you feel confident you're hitting the studs but they keep stripping out, either your screws are too short, you're piloting too much, or your framing is seriously compromised and you should definitely have a look.


Replace light switch with no ground wire in box

Pigtail the ground to the box

It looks like the original installer did a pretty sloppy job of installing the cables (the damaged "redhead" insulating bushing top left is evidence of that").  That aside, the BX armor should be grounded, so by extension, the box should be grounded via the armor.

This means that you should connect the ground screw on the switch to a 10-32 machine screw threaded into one of the holes in the back of the box using a bare or green #14 wire pigtail.  Your average big-box store will carry pre-made-up ground pigtails that you can just screw into the back of the box then attach to the ground screw on the switch, or you can make your own with a 10-32 machine screw and a length of 14AWG wire that's been shucked of its insulation by looping one end of the wire around the screw.


Those symptoms indicate that the blockage is likely beyond the trap that's built into the toilet bowl. It may be where the toilet meets the floor near the wax seal, or it may be even further down the line. If a plunger isn't dislodging the blockage (remember the goal is to suck up, not push down with the plunger), then you can get an auger that's specially designed for toilets (and I would recommend the longer version just in case your clog is further down the line):


What are my options for temperature equalization between two rooms?

Here's a dead-simple idea: use a PTAC unit to air condition the room with excess heat, and dump it into the adjacent room.

That's the general idea behind how companies with huge server rooms recycle heat during wintertime. Their systems are much more sophisticated, of course, inevitably involving heat exchangers, water cooling, thermostats, multiple zones for the heat so conditioned areas don't get too hot, etc.

There are many other ways to do this, depending on the details of your house. If you have ducted heat, you could rig up an air or water-based heat exchanger attached to a new coil in your HVAC air handler. If you have hydronic heat, you could use a similar heat exchanger to put the heat into that system. Etc. It's probably beyond the scope of this website to design such a system for you, but hopefully I've given you some ideas. There are many ways to move heat from one place to another. Get creative!


Old single pane House window has a crack, can I fix it using a resin?

I'm going to say no on this because of how a windshield is made.  They are a layered construction with glass on the outside and a plastic material on the inside.  A small crack or chip in a windshield doesn't  cause a structural failure - the other layers hold the window together.  Resin can be injected into the glass crack and pushed against the other layers with pressure to completely fill the crack.

On a single pane window, there is no backup.  A crack means the glass is literally broken in half at that point and the crack will spread very easily.  And pressure put on the glass to force the resin into the crack would probably be enough to make the crack expand across the glass.

If you were very careful, you may be able to just dab some resin on the surface of the crack and possibly reduce its visibility and give it a little extra strength, but it won't be the same fix as a car window.


How can I fabricate a custom one-off plastic part?

That piece looks to just be a single curve (bent in a single axis), so it's possible to do yourself, but it's not necessarily the easiest thing to do, and you can get some optical distortion depending on how evenly you flex it.

If I were to do it, I'd do the following:

Trace the inside contour onto a piece of wood.
Make multiple wood pieces, slightly under size, one for each 6" or so of the length.
Attach them all with some sort of stringer, or just mount down to a piece of plywood.
Stretch a piece of thin metal (look for aluminum flashing at the hardware store) over the plug.
Make sure the existing piece fits on the plug well, if not, adjust.
Secure the aluminum flashing.  (I recommend contact cement or other adhesive so you don't leave dimples from nails or screws)
Get a piece of plastic the length you need, and maybe a tad wider than you think you need.
Get a few strips of wood the length needed, and some clamps.
Place one side of the plastic against the plug, and clamp in place (use the wooden strip, so you're not clamping against the plastic).
Using a heat gun, evenly heat the plastic at the curve, and slowly apply pressure on the unclamped side.
Once you get it bent, clamp the other side and let cool.

If you have a more complex shape, you can try to find someone who has a vaccuum table (or make your own), or find someone with a large enough autoclave.

And one other thing to note -- flourescent lights give off more UV than incandescent bulbs, so most shrouds for them are UV blocking.


Does anyone know what this material is in my septic system?

Only a chemical analysis could tell you for certain. My best guess is that it is dishwasher soap and grease. I had similar substance in my washer/dishwasher field lines a few years back. My system is not connected to septic.


While drilling into kitchen wall, hit a wire - any advice?

Obviously, safety considerations like isolating that circuit are paramount, and note that even if that circuit's breaker is off, then the neutral touching earth can still trip the Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker...

Find the socket / box that that wire goes to, disconnect it, then pull it out from the other end (which you need to find - either in the roof space or under the upstairs floor) then replace it.

If the copper has been damaged then just covering over with tape may not be safe.

Looking at the plastic cover, this looks like you are in the UK. You can hope that the wire is not totally trapped somewhere...


Removed front closet doors and hardwood below is a different color

The rest of your floor has been stained a darker color and has also weathered with exposure to air.

You have a few choices of how to handle this, listed here from hardest to easiest:

Refinish the entire floor and then it will all be bright and shiny like that strip. (This will be both time-consuming and expensive).
Find the correct stain to match the rest of the floor and carefully fill in the space, applying one light coat at a time until you have matched the existing color. (This will not be expensive, but it might be difficult to find the correct color, will be time-consuming, and a small mistake making it too dark will probably call for stripping and starting again. You will probably also have to strip a little finish right along the work area because the lines are so sharp.)
(Suggested by @Ack) Strip the existing finish from inside the closet only, then refinish the entire closet floor (including this strip). If it's not the same color, it will look like it was meant to be that way to define the closet space. It should probably be a darker color than the main floor.
Nail a threshold to the floor over the spot. You can get a wood threshold and stain it to match (the floor or the rest of the doorway trim) or deliberately leave it contrasting to mark the edge of the closet, or a metal or plastic one.

If it were me, I'd do option #3 or #4. Since the closet is already an obvious doorway, having some difference on the floor (whether threshold or stain) would not be out of place.


What is mineral spirits called in Australia?

Gday mate i just had a read what ya up to , try shellite , that should work .by the way polyurethane is not meant to be rubbed on , normaly brush or spray . if you realy want products to be rubbed on try a french polish supplier .


One of my breaker switches buzzes when I flip it on, should I replace it?

Buzzing breakers are not normal, but a common problem. The usual cause is an unseated magnet vibrating in the breaker. These magnets sometimes do not reseat into the correct position after tripping and resetting. This can cause the breaker to not lock into "on" position or hum under load. I am not sure if this trick will work on a AFCI breaker, but on regular breakers, we remove them and give them a firm slam on it's side. This sometimes jolts the magnet back into the correct position. You can then operate the breaker on and off a few times to confirm it is seated and operates freely.  I have not experienced this sound with a AFCI yet. So the sound could be the magnet vibrating or a defective coil. When I attempted to reseat a magnet and it didn't correct after a couple of "slams", or the condition returned after a trip again, I replaced the breaker.  Obviously there could be another problem and the breaker should be replaced, but the slam trick can be very effective.

The other test is to move the circuit feed to another breaker temporally to see if the hum returns on another breaker (not likely), thus confirming the problem is in the breaker.


Switches are not circuit breakers (overcurrent protection). They cannot protect wire and do not make it ok to use smaller wire past them.

If any 14AWG wire is used, you must downgrade the breaker to 15A, and downgrade the countertop receptacles to 15A. The other wire can remain 12AWG.  This will mean it is not one of the two mandatory 20A circuits for countertop receptacles and you may need to add a circuit.

There is another reason not to put kitchen lights on receptacle circuits. An appliance trip will plunge the cook into darkness.


What diameter of Metal Gate posts are needed for a 10' x 4' tubal gate

Any steel post of 3 or 4" (2" if it is a light weight gate) sunk in the ground 3 ft with concrete poured around will hold a steel gate and not bend. However, in my experience the real problem is, depending on your soil type and moisture, the weight will gradually pull the post over.  Two solutions:  1) On the hinge side use two posts 4ft apart with cross bracing.  2) if the area is reasonably level, buy an wheel to put on the free end.  It will take all the weight save you a lot of potential problems down the road.


Are prehung doors or door blanks easier to install for a beginner?

This would depend on the tools at hand.  If you have the proper chisels and jigs using a blank would be fairly easy, and you would not have to worry about squaring and plumbing the frame.

If you only have a 4' level, a hammer, and some shims hanging a pre-hung door would probably be your best bet.

A third option is if you could find a pre-hung where the hinges would line up with the existing frame, you could simply hang the pre-hung door in the old frame.  This option eliminates almost all the work.

In my opinion, if the existing frame is true I would rather use a blank.  Most pre-hung doors come with really cheap crappy frames (unless you pay extra for a good one), so any time I've used one I ended up building my own frame anyway.


Part identification: Thermal cutoff within baseboard heater

Possible manufacturer could be: https://www.emerson.com/en-us/catalog/therm-o-disc-10h

Product bulletin describes how the thermostat works:

  The 10H capillary tube is vacuum-charged with selected fluids to give specific calibrations. When the calibration temperature is reached, a change in fluid vapor pressure allows the diaphragm to snap through and operate the contacts.

It might be impossible to source just one of those over-temperature switches from them. I'd look to replace the whole heater if an original or an approved replacement for a safety critical component can't be found.


What is the max span that can be supported by 2x4 floor joists?

I’m American so I don’t understand the metric system, but I’ll try to answer.
When you ask for the maximum span of a 2x4 floor joist at 12” on center, there are many issues. We design from the top down and build from the bottom up.

Your subfloor must be rated to span from joist to joist. If you use 12” spacing then a 1/2” thick board is acceptable, but at 16” spacing you should use 5/8” plywood and for 24” spacing then use 3/4” thick plywood.  This is based on supporting 15 lbs. per square foot of Dead Load and 65 lbs. per square foot of Live Load. (This is higher than normal, but will allow you to use a tile floor without deflecting too much.)

The maximum span for joists depends on species and grade. I’ll assume an average grade of Number 1 (C16). C16 is economical to use and easy to find. So, for 2x4 at 12” oc the maximum span is about 7’-6”, which is about the distance you need. (If you go to C24 it could be longer.) Remember, spans are measured from face of support to face of support.

Joist hangers are also rated. Finding a hanger that will accept a true 2” wide joist will be difficult. Simpson has a hanger and is rated for 600 lbs., which is fine for your application.

Using a perimeter ledger could require a 2x6, because you need 4 times the bolt diameter. A 1/2” bolt would require an edge distance of 2”. A 1/2” bolt will need to be about 12” on center to support your load.


How to mount ZWave switch on stone wall - either retrofit in metal box or better?

Thanks for the suggestions in the comments.  I tried various lazy solutions, in the end I had to do it right.  Nothing else worked.
I moved the existing metal box close to the ceiling, I had to keep it involved because one of the wires coming into it is armored.  I then ran NM cable from there to the ZWave switch location and bought a surface mount PVC handy box for it.  I also moved it a few inches away from its original location which was directly adjacent to another metal box.
That all this stuff is mounted on a stone wall did not make it a fun job, which was part of the reason I tried to take short cuts but they just didn't work.


How can I keep a screw from slipping off a screw bit?

As for other options: I really like using square drive bits and fasteners (a.k.a "Robertson"):

They have several advantages over Philips-style screws:

The screw easily attaches to the bit and generally stays put (this is the attribute you seem to be looking for)
The square drive bit does not "cam out" if you don't apply enough pressure.
The bit and fasteners are much more durable, which means you don't generally need to worry about stripping the screw head or damaging the bit.

Admittedly this isn't a viable solution if you need to work with existing fasteners. Also square drive hardware can be a little harder to find, but in my experience Home Depot et al tend to have common fasteners available with square drive heads, and of course anything is available online.


Can i use step-up transformer to transform 110v to 220v for my window AC?

Suppose you did.  The unit is labeled for 2500 watts, which means that is how much power  you must provision.

Let's allow 3% for transformer losses; now we are at 2575 watts.  An air conditioner is treated as a continuous load, so like a lot of things, you must provision power for 125% of the actual load.  So 2575 watts x 125% = 3219 watts.

If you've heard of an 80% derate, that's the very same thing we just did (inverted) so we don't need to derate  further.

3219 watts is 26.8 amps.  That's too much for a 20A or 25A breaker.  A 30A breaker is required.  For that,  your circuit requires 10 AWG copper or 8 AWG aluminum wire.  You will need to run this as a new circuit because I guarantee you won't find this in your existing wall.  And don't even think about overloading a 12 AWG or 14 AWG circuit at 26.8 amps!!!

Or, change the whole circuit to 240V

Turn the breaker in question off and then stick a lamp in every receptacle and see what lost power.  Two questions.

Imagine you couldn't plug 120V appliances in there anymore. Could you live with that?
You have to have a 120V receptacle within 6' of every point along a wall. (i.e. within 6' of the a threshold, then every 12' after that). If these receptacles disappeared, would you still have that?

If both answers are "yes", then you can convert the entire circuit to 240V, and change Every Single Plug to NEMA 6-15.  Obviously 120V things won't plug in there anymore, but that's a good thing! That prevents you from setting your 120V appliances on fire.

A few appliances are capable of working on multiple voltages. Look at their power supply rating to see if they say something like "100-240V" or "90-264V" (that's 100-240V +-10%). For those appliances,  you'll need to change the plug to NEMA 6-15P. Are you daring to think the thought? Don't do it! DON'T leave a NEMA 5 receptacle on a 240V circuit merely so you can plug in dual-voltage devices.  That's how you burn houses down.  The right way is install the proper NEMA 6 in the wall, then change the appliance cord.   Worst case, use a cheater cable. Because then, it's obvious that it's a cheater cable.


Doorbell constantly rings even after replacing switch

What voltage does the doorbell run on and is the pushbutton rated for the same voltage? Might be mismatched.
Other thought is maybe moisture is getting into the pushbutton which is affecting the led.


How can I add a C wire with this unusual installation?

If it really is wired like your diagram, there's nothing wrong with the current wiring.

To add your C wire, simply connect your extra wire to the C terminal in the furnace.  Depending on where the splice of the blue wires from the outdoor unit and the humidifier is, it might be convenient to splice your new C wire in there.

Warning: You'll want to make sure the transformer in the furnace can handle the additional load of the thermostat. It's not commonly a problem, but sometimes can be depending on how the humidifier is connected.


What's the meaning of "expansive trim package"?

I would expect it to mean more than just simple baseboards, door and window trim.

This may include crown moldings, wainscoting, perhaps even a 3 piece base instead of one or two piece, chair rail or maybe even a more elaborate trim around windows and doors.


How do I add a C/ Common wire to my "Specific" HVAC system?

It looks like the transformer is the thing on the bottom, with the red and yellow wires attached. You'll need a multi-meter to verify this as you go - I wouldn't make any assumptions here, especially since it's older. Mis-wiring could cause something to break, and there's a chance finding a replacement will be very difficult.

Use a multimeter (on the "VAC" setting), and you should be able to measure 24V AC across the red and yellow wires whether the furnace is on or not.

Next, you need to figure out which power wire (red or yellow) is already going to the thermostat. Turn the furnace power off (you should now measure 0V AC on the red/yellow wires) AND the thermostat itself off, and use the resistance meter (Ω) on your multimeter to figure out which one of the red or yellow wires goes to the thermostat. You should measure 0Ω (or <1Ω anyway) between one of the wires of the thermostat and either red or yellow. Test both thermostat wires against both. The others will be infinite (not connected). If it's red, then the yellow is your "C" wire, or vice-versa.


Remove old yellow glue from wooden floor that has consistency of cement

The best thing is to try a little bit in an inconspicuous area of the floor to see if it works before doing the rest of the floor.

I just finished cleaning up my floors- I had carpet pad glue all over the floor. For me, two things worked: mineral spirits, and Wil-Bond.

Keep in mind that your surface may be different, your glue may be different. It's also possible that the glue will pull up the protective coating on the wood, or even some of the wood itself. In that case, you may need to re-stain and/or re-surface the wood.


There is generally a lot of friction, making adjustment difficult, so you might have to either disassemble and redo it, or just fill the gap with the matching repair putty.  It will be noticeable because it will be a solid color, but less noticeable than a gap.

However, it doesn't hurt to try to close the gap.  At the end of that row farthest from the gap, you will need to keep that row and both adjacent rows from moving. Take some scrap pieces of laminate (or wood of the same width as the planks), and cut a set of filler strips to match the gaps between each of the three rows and the wall.  Wedge those in place temporarily just for the adjustment.

On the other end of the problem row (the end closest to the gap), you will be trying to push or pull the end of the row to close the gap.  There is a tool for that.  It is a bar or heavy strip maybe 18" long, with a lip at each end.  You lay the bar on the end of the row.  One lip goes down to capture the end of the row.  The other lip sticks up and you tap it with a hammer to pull the gap closed.

If you don't have that tool, you can use a wide pry bar as a lever.  Put the tip of the bar against the end of the problem row.  Above that, stick a long block of wood between the bar and the wall to act as a pivot.  Tap the bar with a hammer above the pivot and in the direction of the wall so that the tip of the bar is being pushed against the end of the plank.

With either method, don't tap so hard that you damage the end of the plank or dent the wall.  A lot of light taps can be as effective as a heavy whack and less likely to damage anything.

The planks might not move at all, or may make the gap narrower but not completely tighten it (or it may close and then rebound open so that you can't totally close it).  But if it doesn't close the gap, any improvement you get will make filling less noticeable if you decide to go that route.

Just some perspective, though, if you can't push the row tight--the flooring will be there for a very long time, and you might kick yourself later for filling the gap rather than doing it right.  If you still don't have many rows installed beyond that, consider biting the bullet and redoing that part of the row while the task is still not insurmountable.


How to poke coaxial cables out of a wall nicely?

Shopping
They sell modular wall plates in 1 to 6 port flavors.

Pick up as many as you need from the local home improvement store. Grab some F type modules, and some low voltage brackets while you're there.

Installation

Cut a hole in the wall large enough for the low voltage bracket to fit.
Install the low voltage bracket.
Shorten the lengths of cable, and add new connectors to the ends (you'll also have to buy these from the home improvement store, so go back and get them).
Connect the cables to the modular jacks.
Install the modular jacks in the modular wall plate.
Install the modular wall plate in the low voltage bracket.

Holey VS. Pointy
The pointy connectors are "male" connectors, whereas the holey connectors are "female".  When a male connector loves a female connector very much... You get the picture (I hope).
Why so many?
There is no way to say for sure why there are so many cables here.  It's possible that some come from somewhere, while others go somewhere else. You'll have to trace the cables to determine where they come from, or where they go to.
For this a cable tracer such as the Gardner Bender Wire-Tracker, can come in handy.


How can I reduce temperature of a hot water tap without adjusting the boiler?

You can install a standalone tempering valve on the line to the sink, or (probably a larger one) on the line to "everything but the shower" which would protect the kitchen sink as well, for instance.


How can I get rid of weather marks on Trex decking?

The original Trex product fades over time and with sun exposure since it's partially composed of wood fibers. Conversely, it may darken where fungus is allowed to grow, such as where it contacts other lumber.

I'd expect the weather marks to lessen in a few months or a year. I'm not sure it's reasonable to expect to remove them, though some of the contrast may be due to soil and fungus. Try a pressure washer with some detergent and then give it some time to even out.

If that fails to provide a good outcome, a penetrating stain can be applied to create a more uniform appearance.


Ceiling fan light fixture comes on with fan

White to white.

Black and blue (from the fan/light) both go to the incoming power if you only have a single switch. (three wires in one wire nut)

It sounds like what you did was hook them up in series. They need to be in parallel.


How do you hang something on sheetrock if you have metal wall studs?

I think you can use toggle bolts based on my experience with them and on the ratings given here: http://www.powers.com/pdfs/plastic/togglebolt.pdf.


I'd like to raise the ceiling height on my second floor but the roof is flat. How do I do this?

Note that this is just a best possible guess based on the current info and in no way should be used as a "given".

Since room is an addition and the fact that you are on the top floor of a flat roof house, I doubt that there is too much to do as far as the roof.  It is quite possible if the room is truly an addition that the roof section could be taken apart and put back up 5 feet higher.  This is all given that your room was really an addition (not just half your room which it sounds like from your description).

Nobody that I know, no engineer I know nor any inspector OK adding on to the existing outer walls - let alone the interior walls.  You have to rebuild.  Taking off the top plate, pulling the electric, taking out windows, and reframing with longer lumber is a quick 1-2 day job for a small crew of 4.

So you have demo, you have a lot of trash, you have taking apart roof, you have materials (lumber, new roofing, new gutters, new flashing for old roof, new siding, new insulation).  This is all given that you keep the exact same windows, don't move electric or plumbing or hvac, and really don't care that much that this height extension will make the house look awkward since doing aesthetics will add on cost.  I have to say on the really really low end if the roof materials and windows can be saved and no surprises surface and you use low-end builder grade finishes someone might quote you 6-8k.  I would think most estimates will come in closer to the 10-15k range.  Again this is given that this room was a true addition.


double ball bearing vs single ball bearing ceiling fan

A double bearing fan will have a longer life than a single bearing fan. The double bearing fan will have a bearing supporting the motor and fan shaft in two locations, rather than one.

A single bearing fan may have a bushing, or just a cantilevered shaft. This will cause the fan to be more difficult to balance and more susceptible to wear.


Stainless steel sleeves to hold wire rope?

What you are doing appears to be similar to standard sailboat wire or cable "rails" and as such a visit to a boatyard/marine supplier would probably inform your process. Rather than being clamped at each post, the wires are typically tensioned from end to end (so the end-points need to be sturdy/strong.) They will also have crimp-sleeve (or swage-sleeve) fittings in stainless, but those are typically just at the ends (in your illustration, it would appear that you intend for them to be crimped inside the posts, which is impractical.)


Get a laser pointer or level.  Sight along the joist from one end to another to establish the level.

Get a ruler and measure the deflection at the center (or lowest point)

Typically, building codes specify a L/360 deflection limit.

This means that the maximum sag in the center of a joist is 1/360th of the length of the joist.


How urgent is it to resolve two-prong problems?

For older appliances and such, pre-electronics, it's only a safety issue and even then, only under the worst case scenarios. The National Electric Code is all about those worst case scenarios however, hence the requirement. I'm not minimizing the safety aspect, I'm just saying that people survived for a LONG time with 2 prong outlets.

That said, the OTHER issue (which was not really an issue when the change was made) is that electronics, or more specifically anything that uses a "Switch Mode Power Supply" (SMPS), needs to have a solid reference to ground so that it can deal with what's called "Common Mode Noise" created by the power supply itself. Now virtually EVERYTHING you see with any sort of electronics in is has a little SMPS, all of them creating CM noise on the line. With no reference to ground, that noise builds up, potentially degrading the life of your electronics. So the longer you wait to fix it, the shorter the life of your computers, TVs, phones, "smart" appliances etc.

But per that other thread, in a lot of cases, older houses were wired with what's called "BX" cable; flexible metal covered conductors, and that was grounded, then the outlet and switch boxes were steel as well, all connected together. So if that's what you have, AND you have a metal screw (not plastic as they are now) holding the cover plate on, you WILL get a ground connection by using those adapters and attaching them via that metal screw.

Here is a better thread illustrating this concept.

What is the purpose of the "grounding" tab/wire on a 3-prong to 2-prong adapter?


How to test if a dishwasher's below the floor heating element is faulty?

Continuity is "An unbroken electrical path in an electronic circuit or connector[1]". First thing, unplug the dishwasher or if hard-wired turn off the circuit breaker. Unplug the connector to the heating element and then test the contacts on the heating element.

A heating element is a semi-conductive (typically coil) that creates heat as it resists the flow of electricity through it, a.k.a. a resistor. Also, even though there may be a clear positive and negative fed into/through it, a resistor does not have positive and negative terminals so orientation of your testing leads doesn't matter. A conductivity test will provide some feedback, but a resistance test with provide more accurate feedback, set your multimeter to Ohms Ω and check that the value across the heating element is within manufacturer's standards.

Whenever testing a heating element, make sure you are actually testing the element and not a circuit before it that drives it!

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuity


Common problem, you have unfortunately been cursed with a series of maroons since fixing a leaking toilet is about the easiest handyman job there is.
My guess is you could do a better job fixing it than the buffoons.  Turn off the water, wipe up all the drips and such behind the toilet so that everything there is clean and bone dry, then turn the water back on and lay back with your head behind the toilet for 20 minutes staring at the plumbing.  Eventually you will see a little bead of water forming somewhere that is where the leak is.  My guess is it's the valve stem seal but there's plenty of other potential areas.  Feel around on the pipes with your fingers.  Water leaks like to happen behind pipes and such where you can't see them and water likes to travel down away from the actual source to make it harder to find the leak.  You can't find these leaks by just staring at pipes you have to get your fingers in there and feel around.


Why does my toilet feed service valve still leak?

Thanks for the comments getterdun and bcworkz.

I went to Toolstation and bought a new service valve and also a new inlet valve for the princely sum of about £11. As per your suggestion I checked the plastic pipe, and it looked a bit rough around the end and one of the teeth of the thread was badly worn, but I couldn't see a way to replace just the pipe so I replaced the whole thing (dismantled the cistern and everything as per a video on YouTube).

I couldn't get the old service valve off, couldn't get enough grip to turn the valve part opposite to the nut part, so I decided to leave the old one now but give it a really good wipe and test anyway with the new inlet valve and pipe. I also used a fresh fibre washer. At first when I turned the water back on it leaked quite a bit and I was slightly disheartened, but I remembered reading somewhere that fibre washers slowly expand as they get wet, so I just put a bucket under the leak and left it for an hour or so. Bingo! No more leak :)


Spend the money to replace the old Pump.
When you are pumping the Laundry out to the yard - those chemicals in your detergent are also going to the Yard and into the water basin of your locality.

If you are outside of city provided water i.e on a well system - how do you feel about having chemicals such as phosphorous in your drinking water, shower water etc..
Of course perhaps you might glow in the dark when electrons hit you :-)


The most important aspect of speaker wire is resistance. There is a ton of junk-science and stupid audiophile marketing claims that will try to confuse you and make you spend absurd amounts of money, but don't be fooled.

Wikipedia actually has a good write-up on it:

  Resistance is by far the most important specification of speaker wire. Low-resistance speaker wire allows more of the amplifier's power to energize the loudspeaker's voice coil. The shorter the cable and the greater the conductor's cross-sectional area, the lower its resistance. Depending on the hearing ability of the listener, this resistance begins to have an audible effect when the resistance exceeds 5% of the speaker's impedance.

They also have a chart: for 35' at 8Ω, you're good with 18 or 16AWG.

All you need is basic stranded cable. Don't pay extra for fancy brands, or "oxygen-free" or "hand woven by the dalai lama" or whatever (unless you have the money to burn and really way to, I guess) as there's really no difference -- you can use lamp cord, if you want.

In proper tests, the best audiophiles can't tell the difference between $500/ft "top of the line" speaker wire and coat hangers -- and if you can, James Randi will give you $1 million (sorry, a bit OT from your question, but people that believe in this nonsense really piss me off).

For in-wall applications, you should get wire rated for in-walls - which basically boils down to fumes that the wire gives off in a fire. There's a good article on Understanding In-wall Speaker, Video and Audio Cable Ratings on Audioholics. In short, in a 1-2 family dwelling, any cable with the following ratings is suitable for in-wall: CM, CMP, CMR, CMG, CL2*, CL3*.


Is an ungrounded GFCI outlet safer than a plumbing-grounded non-GFCI outlet?

This is not even a contest. A non-GFCI outlet will happily send 1A through hot, into a faulty or misused appliance (think: submerged toaster), from there through you into some other ground (any ground will do, it doesn't have to be that same appliance's ground), without noticing anything's amiss. You, meanwhile, are dead several times over. The ungrounded GFCI-protected outlet, OTOH, trips as soon as the current imbalance reaches 30mA or so. If all the current leaving the GFCI eventually returns, there's none left to be going through your heart.

Yes, the GFCI could fail to open when it should (so test it regularly), but the counter-objection is that having a ground on the outlet doesn't guarantee that the circuit breaker will operate when a loose wire in an appliance touches the chassis. This is why my local electrical code doesn't like the idea of a single failure causing harm, so all socket outlets must be both GFCI-protected and grounded. For some reason I don't quite understand, lighting fixtures are exempt from this, as are stoves/ovens.


Nope. Get the ground wire outta there! (out of the neutral splice). There should be a ground wire from the bottom of the switch hooked on a green ground screw and tied to the ground(s) in the box, nutted with a green nut. The neutral splice should only consist of neutral wires and the ground wires should all be tied together with a green nut. Wire colors can't be mixed in most cases.
Would like to know if home was recently built before the postscript question?


How can I test a dishwasher's water inlet valve?

Inlet valve's are normally the first to go, so I'd stop testing & order that new valve assembly. Other than that, turn off the circuit breaker or perform a reset & see if it's just a temporary fault that blocked it's operation.


Washing machine shutoff valve won't close

You are correct, they are indeed quarter turn valves. To my knowledge, there is no way to repair the valve in question. There is an alternative other than sweating copper for replacing the washer outlet box, but it still requires opening up the wall.

The alternative being a washer outlet box with sharkbite fittings for your shutoff valves. You'll still have PVC, most likely, for the drain to deal with.

I would recommend hiring a plumber to tackle this particular task.


I've used Smart Home's Insteon switches to do this.  The switches are a bit pricey, but work well.  You don't need to rewire the entire house, just replace individual switches as you need to.  One of the additional benefits is that you don't need to constrain yourself to how the original switches were wired up.  If you want to control a particular light that wasn't originally wired up as a three-way, its easy to do.  One thing that I did was add control of the outside lights to a tabletop controller next to my bed.  That way I can turn on the spotlights without going downstairs.


How Much Weight Can My 1/2" Drywall Ceiling Take?

You will NOT want to support your 78 1/2 inch rod from the drywall alone. Drywall fastened up to the ceiling is a pretty good challenge just holding up it's own weight then yet you trying to add 70 pounds to that.

So what you want to do is to locate the support members (usually called ceiling joists) to which the drywall is attached. You would then want to use screws that penetrate through the drywall and and up into the support member to hold up the brackets for your rod. For most ceiling supports the members will be found to be 16 or 24 inches apart so you should be able to find 5 or more support points for the rod if it is running across the direction of the support members. If the rod is running in the same direction as a ceiling support member then you would attach the rod support brackets at 4 to 6 locations along the same support member. In this latter case it means that you cannot locate your bar just any old place but directly under a ceiling support member.

Finding where the ceiling joists are located can be done with a stud finder tool. A simpler scheme is to get a strong magnet and scan it across the ceiling looking to find the steel nails or screws that are holding up the drywall. Each located screw will be at a point just under a support member. Find multiple points and a ceiling joist map can be created.

If the bar that holds up the ball chain partition is an extruded metal track then the mounting technique will likely not involve any brackets but instead involve drilling holes through the metal track at the correct points where screws can then be run up through the track into the support members in the ceiling.


What thickness drywall do I need for 24" OC wall studs in a detached garage?

You actually have a couple of options in this case.  The easiest option would be to simply use 12 ft sheets of 5/8 fire rated sheetrock and rent a lift to do the ceiling with.  A lift is very easy to use and almost makes it a one person job.  Personnally, I'd also use 5/8 on the walls as well. As BMitch already mentioned, mount the wall sheets horizonally and stagger the vertical joints.  You can use 2X4 nailers, (fire breaks) at the 4ft OC point, but not really necessary.  You will not see any bowing or cupping with 5/8" at 24" OC on walls.

The second, and BEST option would be to install 3/4" strapping 12" OC across the field of the ceiling, and around the parameter.  This will give you a lot more surface area to screw the drywall to and make aligning joints a lot easier, especially if the 24" joists are not perfectly spaced or square. Putting up strapping is quick and easy if you have a nail gun. Use 4D ring nails. Ring nails will hold tight and not loosen over time.

Hint: Use a chalk line on rock to mark backer locations before you hang it, or you can also mark the location of your joists or strapping on the wall before you lift the rock into place. Secure the rock with a few screws to hold it in place, then  use the marks to snap a quick chalk line marking the location of your strapping. This will assure you hit a solid spot with every screw. Ceiling screws should be no more than 16 inches apart.


Recommended floor protection when assembling Ikea furniture?

Kudos for being such a diligent renter. The cardboard they come in is totally adequate. Depending on what you've got, you might even have a nice double layer workspace.


How do I fill my grill's propane tank from my house tank?

When I asked our builder and the gas supplier about this, I was told unequivocally no. None of them wanted to get involved in any way in allowing a homeowner to be able to fill a propane tank.
I was told that this was a "safety issue". As has been typical, the people I was actually talking to don't know the code chapter and verse and so could not of course document any actual legal prohibition. But they were adamant that there was in fact a legal prohibition, and that being able to fill a propane tank at home was a non-starter.
Even if it turns out that their information isn't perfectly accurate, it's clear that filling a propane tank is at least a little finicky, and you will want to make sure that the equipment is installed by a professional, and that you are given adequate training not only on the process, but how to deal with things if/when the equipment doesn't work as expected.
Some quick research online, and I can add to the above:

At the very least, it is likely you will need your bulk propane tank retrofitted. Filling a grill tank (typically a 20 lb tank) requires liquid propane. While your bulk tank has liquid propane in it, the propane that comes from it for domestic use is the gaseous propane at the top of the tank. You would need a separate "liquid propane tap", which involves connecting to a different line attached to the tank that pulls from the bottom of the tank. It seems that while it is common for this line to be present, it normally is not configured to be usable by the homeowner. Your gas supplier would need to attach appropriate hardware to the tank to allow its use. Which brings us back to the point above.

(Aside: you need to fill with liquid propane, because just as evaporating the liquid propane reduces the temperature, allowing frost to accumulate on the outside of the tank, compressing the gaseous propane enough to condense it will heat it up. Even if you had a pump available capable of compressing the gaseous propane that you get out of your bulk tank, to fit it into the grill tank over any reasonably short period of time you'd wind up heating the propane up enough to be dangerous.)
The bottom line is: if you can find a gas company that is willing to help, this is possible. But it's not DIY, at least not to get things set up initially.
There is, no surprise, a lot of conflicting information to be found online. IMHO, a lot of it comes down to just how willing you are to risk blowing yourself up. FWIW, I found this post one of the more useful and apparently well-informed.
My favorite quote from that thread, regarding the wisdom of installing the necessary adapter equipment on your bulk propane tank yourself:

if you insist on doing it yourself, get you family to go out for the day, move your car or truck at least 100 yards away and leave you wallet and a note in your vehicle. It will help the emergency response folk understand what happened if there's an accident.

You may also find some useful discussion here: https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/137881-20lb-propane-tanks-can-you.html. As always, take everything you read with a grain of salt. That's especially important here; looking through these threads and others, it's clear a number of people have successfully filled their own propane tanks without killing themselves, only due to them having remarkably competent guardian angels.

For what it's worth, what you _can_ do (i.e. what my gas supplier has done) is provide a quick-release tap near the grilling area, so that the propane grill can be connected directly to the household supply.
Note: this may require some tweaking of the gas regulator(s). Weber, for example, requires the customer to contact them directly to obtain the hook-up kit. I have read in their customer reviews (though didn't see anything in their official documentation) that propane grills require 14 water column-inches of pressure, while normal household pressure is 11 wc. This would require a separate regulator for the gas hookup than for the other household taps, something that the gas supplier would need to provide for when installing the tap.
Update: Since writing the previous paragraph, I have acquired a Weber grill and the necessary parts to connect it to our household bulk propane. Note that I already had the gas installers provide a pipe with a shutoff valve at the barbeque area. To order the Weber parts for the hookup, I was required to provide them with the serial number for my grill. Even with that, the parts included only the two mating parts of a quick-release connector, along with the hose and regulator to connect to the grill. I still needed to purchase the necessary adapter fittings to go from the quick-release connector to my gas line (if I recall correctly, the Weber parts had a 3/8" threaded connector while the gas line was 1/2").
The gas pressure turned out to not be an issue. The Weber parts are designed to work correctly with the standard household pressure of 11 water-column inches.


The soldered C terminal is labeled on the transformer board. To confirm you should be able to follow that wire to a ground terminal. You might have to cut and splice that wire.
That being I'm not convinced from the blurry diagrams that the standard furnace wiring setup will work with your boiler, after connecting the C wire you may need to connect the R from the boiler transformer board to the Rc terminal on the nest and use the Rh/W1 on the nest as dry contacts for the two wires currently connected to the old stat.


Gas shut-off inside plaster: why?

Because your house was built by 'professionals', and not a DIYer who plans on living with the end product.

  Is there any valid reason this might have been done this way?

No.

  are there options to add another shutoff valve further along the connection?

Sure.  I wouldn't bother though.  What you did by freeing the existing valve is good enough.

That valve is there for people to be able to remove the appliance for service or replacement.  It's not for emergencies.  And once the appliance is moved out it's plenty accessible.

For emergencies, go outside and use the valve by the meter to cut off gas supply.


Why is my dryer turning off mid-cycle and staying off for 30-60 minutes?

Yes, Check the vent pipe all the way to the end where it exits the building. You will most likely find that it is stuffed with lint to the point of restricting the air flow from the dryer to the outdoors. Restricted air flow will cause the inside of the dryer to overheat and then some type of safety cutout or thermal breaker is opening up the power circuit. The 30 to 30 minutes you are seeing is likely the time it takes for things to cool back down enough for the thermal cutout to reset itself.

If the vent pipe is clear you should feel a nice brisk flow of warm damp air coming out the end of the dryer vent.

I had this problem when I moved into my house. Some 15 feet of vent pipe was totally stuffed and I had to do a major amount of unstuffing and running a rotary brush up the pipe on a flexible shaft. I also ended up adding a new larger style vent end flap on the pipe on the side of the house wall that integrated a removable plastic grille. Now I just have to look at that once every 3-4 months and get up there and clean it out.


The answer is fairly obvious to me. For one thing, 55 parts per million isn't "high".

  When cold engines first start, they run rich," Greiner said. The catalytic converter is cold and not converting deadly carbon monoxide (CO) to carbon dioxide (CO2). Concentrations in the exhaust can be more than 80,000 parts per million. Concentrations so large fill the garage with carbon monoxide in a very short time even with the door open. ...after only two minutes of warm-up in the opened garage, carbon monoxide concentrations rose to a lethal 575 parts per million

https://www.extension.iastate.edu/pages/communications/CO/co_car.html


Why is my desk still tacky two weeks after finishing it with a polyurethane clear coat?

The poly simply needs to cure for a while. Even after it "dries" and is safe to work on, the solvents that keep the polymers in suspension aren't all gone; they'll continue to evaporate, and the clear coat will fully harden in time. Check the can for your particular product; it should have a full cure time. It could take up to a month if you laid on a really thick coat and it's humid in your area.

Contrary to intuition, you can wax furniture that has a poly coat, much like you can wax a car that has a clearcoat. Just pick up a can of Minwax, apply and buff, then let dry overnight. This additional protective coating will be temporary, but hard, water-repellent and slick.


how is a blank wallplate attached to drywall

There are several ways they're commonly installed, any of which can be considered "normal":

To a standard or old-work electrical box
To a low-voltage bracket or frame
To hollow-wall anchors in the drywall or concrete


How can I fix this coating on the kitchen sink?

Looks like a repaint. (Those are popular in the real estate world, because they look good for a couple of weeks.)

Since it's failing, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it was a crummy job and will probably continue to get worse.

Three choices:

live with it
painstakingly strip and paint again. (Professional recommended... good ones use epoxy paints/equipment that aren't really DIY. A good job will last reasonably well, though not forever.)
new sink, though this often turns into a quagmire of new faucets, plumbing, counter, cabinets, flooring, paint, windows...


How to fix a towel bar drywall anchor getting loose?

I might suggest my, "If you don't overbuild it, it isn't worth doing," approach by:

locating the studs and marking their centers (they should be 16" apart);
cut out a stud-center to stud-center swath of drywall to include where your towel bar was mounted;
replace drywall (using a "patch piece" from local HW store - usually 16"x16", so if you do a 4"x16" strip you can afford 3 do-overs);
tape edges of your patch, prime, texture to match, prime again, and paint. If you take your time, it'll take you a full day.

There are many ways to patch a hole in drywall and screwing to the studs offers a good, standard way to do this without adding extra stuff that isn't supposed to be there and will also be strong enough to hold your towel rack. If all else fails, you might consider replacing a half-sheet of drywall to obtain a new, strong mounting base for all towel racks. The more repairs needed to a given area, the bigger your patch should be to be able to hold what you are mounting to it.

Happy drywalling!


How can I make swinging barn doors weather tight?

Without pictures or a description of what you've currently got to make them "airtight", it's hard to make a specific recommendation, but in general, do the same things you do for French doors on your house:

Weather stripping all around the openings
Weather stripping between the doors
Rubber sweeps at the bottom of the doors

If the doors weren't originally designed for weatherstripping, adding it may make it very difficult to close them, so you may have to either get some very thin rubber or foam gaskets, or, using some of those woodworking tools in your woodworking shop, adapt the doors and/or openings to make room for thicker weatherstripping.
Whatever you do, just make sure that the doors close tightly and that your updates don't prevent the latches from working.


Is a timed electrical switch causing vent fan to run slower / with less power?

The timer you installed is designed for incandescent lights only. They make a timer suitable for induction loads (fan motor) You need to switch it out for the correct timer switch. I made the same mistake myself and getting the correct switch solved the slow fan problem.


Soaking the stirrer in just plain water overnight should soften the compound. A scraper and wire brush will help get into the hard to reach areas. Most paint stirrers are usually less than $10. Is spending a hour or two trying to clean something so cheap worth the time?  I would just buy a new one for your friend and keep the old one.


What is a good duct tape for cold weather?

Doing any kind of taping in cold weather is difficult. The specifics vary by brand as much as by type. I suggest you buy small rolls, stuff into your deep freeze, then attempt to use. This will allow you to reject types/brands that are impossible to get off the roll. By putting various sample surfaces in the freezer with them, you can test for adhesion to various surfaces.

Start with a google search for "cold weather tape" including the quotes for find tapes that are specifically meant for this use.

Problems associated with taping in cold weather:

The tape sticks too well to itself, and is difficult to get off the roll.
The tape doesn't stick to much of anything including itself, once peeled free.
Objects have frost on them, making adhesion difficult.
Fingers are cold and clumsy doing a job that can be tough enough with working fingers.

Tapes to try:

Common duct tape.
Gorilla tape.  I think they use a different adhesive.
Gaffer's tape.  Used in the movie/vid/audio industry.  Doesn't leave a residue when removed.
Fiberglass reenforced clear tape.  If it doesn't stick, tie it.  Note:  You cannot break this by hand.  Requires a cutter.
Electrical (vinyl) tape

Alternative fastenings

zip ties.  Note that the cold fingers problems can be acute with these.
double sided vecro tape. Has hooks on one side, loops on the other.
Small diameter rope -- paracord.  Avoid the coarse weave poly propylene rope.  Even at room temperature getting a knot to hold can be tricky.
Baling wire. (black iron wire about 1 mm diameter) easy to bend.
Snare wire. Finer, and stiffer than baling wire, usually galvanized or brass plated. Doesn't rust for a while.
shipping cling wrap.

Caution:

Duct tape loses something as it ages. Old duct tape seems to fall in love with itself, and the tape splits along the embedded fabric rather than peel free from the roll.


This is easy see the threads on the shaft ? You need to twist the  “hole cover” maybe after releasing a set screw at about 2 o’clock in the photo. Turning that cover clockwise will tighten it ,
if their is a set acres in that 2 o’clock position turn it the set screw or grub screw ccw and tighten the cover ,when  it is tight turn that set screw CW  to hold it tight. To me this hardware looks older and of higher quality than a 60’s house unless early 60’s , but this should help.


Drywall Painting: Do I need to keep priming here?

When you say you can see the brush marks, do you mean that they're actually irregularly surfaced?  I mean - are we talking just a visual effect or an actual difference in the depth of the paint?

If the latter, do a skim coat with lightweight joint compound and when it dries, either lightly sand OR smooth with a large, slightly damp sponge, then apply primer.

As for your own brush strokes - orient the roller so the roller bar leads your motion.  If you're moving right, put the bar on the right.  If you're moving left, put the bar on the left.  The most pressure will be on the roller bar side, so keeping that side on the "front" of your motion will mean the lighter touch side (the back) will smooth out the uneven strokes as you pass over it again.

Now if its not a real issue with texture, just that your seams are obvious - then just prime it again with a good HEAVY primer, using the proper brush techniques, and you'll be fine. :)


Device to share power between service panels

I don't see any practical way, and by that I mean cost effective and in a manner that both sides would be satisfied with the result. See Ed Beal's comment.
You could set up a transfer switch (a double pole double throw switch with a neutral position). The common poles would connect to the appliance and each side of the switch would connect to opposing panels including breaking the neutral. Then whom ever would want to use the appliance would have to be able to switch to his panel. When they were finished the circuit would have to be reset to the neutral position automatically. To keep one person from using the other persons power you would have to set up some sort of interlock where one side could only turn on their power and not the other. It is also important to note that no one really manufacturers this sort of device so control would be a one off set of parts.
In most multi-residential buildings you have shared appliances on a House Panel which serves a common area and the utility charge is divided up and billed as part of the rent.
Hope this helps.


How do I stop water from building up in toilets and bathtubs?

There is a decent probability that your septic tank is full and should be inspected and pumped out.

I suggest doing this first since it should be done anyway (after 4+ years) and it is a lot less effort than dismantling your plumbing or running snakes.


Electric Box Fan was spinning on its own

Box fan blade will rotate whilst its motor is turned off if an air current is impinging on the blade surfaces.