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Why don't my Radiators get hot? When I turn on my heat, the pump attached to the boiler comes on but the pipes don't get hot and the radiators never do either. I've bled them and believe they are hot water radiators (since there is a pump), so from what I understand sludge shouldn't be an issue. <Q> We ended up bleeding the radiators, upping the pressure, and replacing the thermocouple. <S> After all of that, we discovered that flames had been shooting out of the front of the boiler and melted half of the valve , messing up the electronics for the pilot light. <S> We ended up replacing the entire boiler since it was 35 years old anyway, but the reason for the issue was the messed up valve. <A> Low water Air lock or circulator not working is most common problems. <S> What is the pressure of system ? <S> Should be around 12 cold 20 hot. <S> Add water to system if lower. <S> You may have automatic feeder. <S> Check for any air bleeder that can be open. <A> Currently, I live with my grandpa, after 7 years I have been pretty-roughly introduced to the concept of hot-water heating via the radiators surrounding the basement, first floor and second floor apartment. <S> We have constantly had issues with this type of heating, as it is a dated system, but here is what I have come to recognize over the past 7 years of working with him to get the apartments and basement warmed up. <S> Chances are there is air in the radiators. <S> Bring a small bucket, an old rag/t-shirt, and a flat screwdriver. <S> Set the bucket about 6 inches below the bleeder, and say 6 inchesout. <S> Put a rag over the bleeder hole <S> Gently unscrew the bleeders, this will open it up and water should spew out, not allthe way, just enough so water leaks out. <S> let it run, and allow the water to flow into the bucket, if it's in a not-so-easy spotfor the bucket, use the rag to sop up any water coming out. <S> Check for a steady flow of water, check if it's warm, check if it's spitting out initially or indefinitely. <S> I have come to find that initially it will spit out a few times, indicating there was water in the line. <S> Let it run til it gets about luke warm, maybe not, room temp. <S> If it never does, and the heater is on, then you can isolate the issues. <S> Hope this helps. <S> Cheers!
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I would check all the air bleeders on the radiators in the given area.
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Why does my laptop charger make a spark when plugged in? From time to time (not always but often enough) when I plug my laptop's charger in the wall outlet it makes a spark (even if I use different outlets it's the same). Why does it do this? Is this a normal behavior? Is it not? Can this damage the charger, laptop or electrical installation? Is it safe? I'm in Europe. Electrical outlet gives 220V/50Hz (from a pretty old aluminum electrical installation) while the charger is a 65W AC Adapter with 100-240V, 50-60Hz, 1.5A input and a 19.5V, 3.34A output. <Q> It can indeed be " normal " for a small brief spark to be seen or heard, when plugging in or removing a plug. <S> Plugging in. <S> Electricity desperately wants to get home, and will go to extreme measures to do so. <S> Inside your receptacle electricity waits, patiently biding its time. <S> As you bring the plug closer to the receptacle, the electricity can see a way home and gets really excited. <S> Once the plug gets close enough, the resistance of the air is no longer great enough, and the electricity is able to jump the gap. <S> As the electricity jumps the gap, it shows its excitement by releasing light and sound. <S> Pulling the plug Similarly, when something is plugged in, the electricity is running through the circuit on it's way home. <S> As you pull the plug, some of the electricity makes a last-ditch effort to get home. <S> Again it jumps the gap, and releases the familiar excitement light and sound. <S> Safety <S> This type of arcing happens; to some extent, in every electrical appliance that connects and disconnects an electrical circuit. <S> Devices that consistently see larger than normal arcing, typically employ some form of arc suppression or protection. <S> For example, circuit breakers commonly have some form of arc suppression, or protection. <S> When to worry <S> If the arcing is continuous, even when the plug is inserted fully The arcing occurs when nothing is plugged in, or being plugged in or unplugged. <S> The spark is large (in brightness, sound, duration, and/or length). <S> Precautions Keep flammable objects away (curtains, furniture, petrol, etc.) <S> Further reading: Electric arc <S> Electrical breakdown <A> Why does it do this? <S> It's because the charger has a low impedance and because the prongs in the plug or the contacts in the outlet are dirty, corroded, worn or loose. <S> Is this a normal behavior? <S> No it is not normal, but it isn't especially rare. <S> Is it not? <S> Yes it is not. <S> Can this damage the charger, laptop or electrical installation? <S> It is unlikely to cause damage to the charger or the laptop. <S> Is it safe? <S> Nothing in life is safe, there are only degrees of safety. <S> Sparks can set fire to things. <S> it is preferable (and safer) to have connectors that don't cause noticeable sparks. <S> Since you are concerned and outlets and plugs are cheaper than today's lunch, I would replace both. <A> It is normal. <S> I live in Europe too and got my electricity checked a while ago. <S> The chargers don't have an off and on switch so the electricity bursts from the outlet to the charger. <S> Don't worry the plugs are made from special material that stops electricity from shocking you. <A> The Arc is also a result of the high inrush current. <S> Laptop supplies have a flyback converter. <S> The AC grid voltage is first rectified followed by a capacitor. <S> During plug in this capacitor is empty and has very low impedance, so a very high inrush current. <S> The current depends on the moment you plug in: during a zero crossing of the voltage will give very low current while plugging in at the top of the sine <S> , you have max inrush current and max arc. <A> This may be already solved, but I do have some experience with this. <S> I figured out that the way to stop this from happening was to plug-in the power supply first into the Laptop and then connect the prongs into the electrical lines, therefore grounding it with metal. <S> While it may not stop the electrical surge, it's better incase <S> you are worried about a fire or a shock to yourself.
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Sparking can erode the contacts (plug pins or outlet contacts) but this is a minor problem if it only happens when you initially push the plug in. The points at which the arc contacts do suffer a small amount of damage, but can typically withstand many arcs without failure. Sparks are a possible symptom of a bad contact that may be causing heat that can lead to failure or fire. I'm from America (Not USA, but Latin America) and while the power is different from Europe, I did have something similar happen to my laptops for sometime.
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What's wrong with my painting technique? I'm struggling with paint. I've been using a high-gloss Behr enamel for our trim work in our house. This photo shows a door on the left that was rolled on, and the casing on the right, which was brushed on. I don't mind brush strokes (not that they are intentional, but I do find they give a bit of interest) but rather it's the light/dark spottiness I get everywhere. I can't tell what causes it. I don't think it's coverage, as all surfaces were primed (white) and then got two coats. It's as if the paint, as it dries, splotches like this. I'm about to apply a 3rd coat, but it's frustrating to paint trim with 3 coats. It seem like every coat I give it, the problem persists. Any ideas as to what the issue is? Can I improve my technique? Lousy paint? Something else? (Ignore the blue tinge...that's just a side effect of the iPhone's camera). <Q> Latex paints have a known attribute that allows certain things to persistently come through the paint even though you try applying multiple layers. <S> I once had a problem of a wall that had a poster glued to it by a previous owner. <S> I removed the poster and apparently the glue residue, however small it was, kept changing the paint I applied over that area. <S> Another time I was trying to paint a door that had been finished with an oil based product. <S> I had worked diligently to strip and sand off the old finish before painting. <S> Unfortunately the old finish had penetrated the wood to varying degrees in different spots. <S> The paint I applied to the door was not uniform even after four or five coats - hard to remember exactly how many as it was 25 years ago. <S> The fix for both of these problems is to apply a sealer / primer product like Kilz before applying the final paint. <S> One needs to make sure the surface is properly prepared before applying the sealer / primer. <S> Light sanding can help and washing with a strong solution of hot water and TSP can help. <A> Well, after posting the question I did some googling <S> and apparently I'm not the only one experiencing blotchiness with this particular Behr product. <S> I went to the local True Value yesterday and picked up a brand of theirs <S> and...it went on MUCH easier and faster. <S> I put two coats of that on areas I hadn't painted and it covers much better. <S> So, the verdict... <S> I guess I just wasn't using very good paint. <S> Which is a shame because it wasn't cheap paint. <S> I did notice that the Behr, compared to the other product was extremely thick. <S> I've used the Behr product in the past as well (same experience) and it, too, was also very thick so for whatever reason, they seem to use a rather thick formula, which perhaps contributes to the uneven finish? <A> <A> Behr paints aren't the greatest. <S> I only use their ceiling paint. <S> With regard to covering stains and the like, a quality primer makes all the difference. <S> Kilz is a good one, but it stinks. <S> Sherwin-Williams Pro Block is my usual primer. <S> It's a good quality, but doesn't work on the tough stains. <S> Pigmented shellac is the nuclear primer option, but it's awful smelling.
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My guess is the paint wasn't stirred well enough and this is caused by a separation of the paint in the can.
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How can I cut a cinder block wall to run large round duct through it? When an addition was put onto the house that I own, the previous owner just ran the duct work into the crawl space through an old basement window. I want to re-route the duct work by actually cutting a hole through the neighboring cinder block wall. There are 2 flex-ducts being routed through the window. I want to combine these into a larger, rigid duct (maybe 8" to 10") and cut just a single hole. What tool do I need to cut through the cinder block wall and should I be concerned with any pit falls. I'm not positive what size I should use for the rigid duct, but I can ask that in another question. <Q> Chalk a circle the size that you want. <S> Drill holes every quarter of an inch or so. <S> Drill bit only need be thick enough to not break as it passes through. <S> Do this all the way around till you can gently hammer out the hole. <A> If the cinder blocks are empty, a standard masonry drill bit in the 3/4 inch (19 mm) range plus a sawzall (which can be inexpensively rented, but you'll have to buy a blade ). <S> it is best that the edges of the hole be at least an inch (3 cm) away from cinder block edges and mortar but can go through them. <S> Drill the 3/4 inch pilot hole inside but near the circle's line. <S> Use care to get it square (perpendicular) <S> all the way through and press lightly as it passes through the opposite face. <S> (If you drill the hole right on the line, there will be an unsightly gap to deal with later.) <S> Until you get a feel for how much chipping it does, stay safely away from the line—an inch should be enough at first. <S> (See example video .) <S> The hole need not be big enough for the full height of the sawzall blade. <S> When cutting through the block edges and mortar, angle the saw as shown. <S> Repeat from other side to finish cutting through. <A> If you go to an HVAC supply warehouse, you can find pre-made ducts the size of a standard cinder block that include structural support to replace the support lost by removing a block. <S> The HVAC supply guys can also advise on the proper spacing/placement for putting in more than one duct, which it sounds like you need.
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Trace a duct end onto the blocks where you want the hole: Place sawzall into the hole and—if you haven't used one before, practice by cutting toward the center of the circle—cutting slowly to avoid fracturing the brittle material. It can be started in about half its full width.
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How to move stacked washer/dryer from closet I'd like to replace the water hoses on my stacked washer/dryer set - the purchase records for the set show that they are 6 years old, and as far as I know the hoses have never been replaced. They are in a narrow closet that's only about 8 - 10" wider than the washer/dryer itself. If I took the folding door off, I think I could squeeze beside the set to reach the back and replace the hoses, but I still need to slide it out from the wall to gain access to the recessed hose box. It's in a small narrow bathroom, so there's not a whole lot of working space in the room itself. Since I didn't see the installation of the units, I have no idea how to slide them away from the wall, I don't know if they joined the set outside the closet and slid them in as a unit, or if they stacked them inside the closet. I see how I could pry up the front of the set to place it on a furniture slider or a very low dolly, but I don't see how to get the back to slide. The back of the set is only about 2" from the wall, so I couldn't tip it back very far to slide anything beneath it. The washer is a front loader, and the washer/dryer set weighs about 350 lbs. Is there some sort of specialized dolly that can jack up the whole set to move it away from the wall? Is there some other trick to moving the set? Even if I wanted to split the set and remove the dryer to lighten the load on the washer or to make it easier to reach the hose box, I'd still have to get behind the unit to disconnect the dryer gas line and power cord. Any tips/techniques for this, or should I hire an appliance repair person (or team) to do it? <Q> Furniture movers are glides that slip under the feet of furniture or appliances to allow then to slide. <S> The hard plastic slides on rugs and the fuzzy covers slide on hard floors. <S> You can slip a pair of these under the front of your unit and, if you can, under the back legs as well. <S> If not, tilt the unit slightly forward and pull. <S> This is best done with two people. <S> These stackables are usually placed one at a time, but the upper unit clips into the lower fairly firmly. <S> There is often a screw connection. <S> If there is not room to get behind to disconnect the upper, better to pull them out as a unit. <S> Almost always the lines (water, power, gas, vent) are long enough to get the unit free of the closet and to then reach behind it, but check as you go, using a mirror if need be. <A> These use air pressure to lift and move heavy objects like stoves, washer/dryers, fridges, etc. <S> The linked product can hold 800lbs. <S> Unfortunately they are expensive <S> so it's probably not something you would acquire for a one-time move, though you might see if you can rent or borrow one. <A> I went to Home Depot, they told me to spray something like windex or some soapy water near the feet of the bottom and kind of wiggle until the set slides. <S> I can tell you it works with a little bit of effort to get it started. <A> First, remove the door on the washer. <S> Two screws. <S> Usually a Phillips screw driver (+ end) or socket and ratchet. <S> Once the door is off, you will have better leverage at lifting the stacked units. <S> Be sure not to grab the drum portion of the washer when lifting and pulling forward. <S> There is also the rubber seal, so be gentle of that. <S> If not, my method will work because I just pulled out my set yesterday. <S> The installers did not insert the drain tube correctly and I had a flood. <S> I have the largest Samsung units that were available and have about 1/2 inch on either side. <S> So, I know this will work for you. <S> Once you are finished, secure the dryer vent, secure the drain tube so that it will not come out. <S> Make sure that there are no leaks from the water connecting points/valves. <S> Slide it all back into place. <A> Rent an appliance dolly from UHaul and have someone else there for an extra set of hands. <S> These dollies are specifically built to make moving appliances very easy and since you'd only have to access the units from the front, it would work well in your tight situation. <S> The strap holds the appliances on to the dolly <S> and I'm sure you could loop the strap by going over the top of the machines. <S> It would work without the strap as well just to get them out far enough to access the hoses. <S> The two units can tip forward together (and you don't have to tip them far - just enough to lift the back edge) and both lean on the dolly because it's tall enough to get halfway up the top unit. <S> I've rented one and moved all my big appliances with just my dad and myself a couple of times. <A> I just thought of a way that I'd try. <S> Get some sliders, or make some cardboard pads by folding over 4"x4" pieces for each of the front corners. <S> Buy a furniture jack (see example below) to lift up one front corner at a time and slide the slider under it. <S> Repeat for other front corner. <S> You and someone else pull on the each end of the rope to pull both units forward while slightly tilting them forward. <S> Once you gain access to a back corner, put glider under it too. <S> If you don't want to buy the furniture jack, try lifting corners using a crowbar. <S> Just put 3/8" plywood scrap below bottom of crowbar to prevent marring floor. <A> Requirements: moderate strength and an 8" diameter waist line. <S> You don't need anything except elbow grease. <S> Pull at a slight angle to start 'walking' it forward, mere inch(es) at a time. <S> Each consecutive pull is on the opposite side; keep cocking it back and forth, walking it out (think: Itz Bitz Spider ). <S> The trouble is if the feet start to dig into the floor, then you'll need someone's help. <S> If it feels or sounds like it's scratching the floor, get something under the front feet that it can ride on. <S> I say 'walking' however the feet never leave the floor, unless it hits a snag in the flooring. <S> Then you'll have to lift, bump, or otherwise convince it to cooperate, after having ascertained which foot is giving you grief. <S> It may be easier to break that seal by giving it a push or pull from behind.
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If you have the furniture glides, lift the front end of the stacked units and slide in the glides under each leg. Work a large rope behind the washing machine below the water valves. The feet could be age-glued-in-place. Someone like a repairman who frequently has to move stuff like this would probably have an " Air Dolly " or "Air Sled".
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What's the best way to hang this large picture on insulated plasterboard? I would like to hang this fairly large framed picture on my living room wall. The frame measures 167x75cm, and weighs roughly 8.5kg. Both top and bottom of the frame had snapped previously (while being transported from abroad), and have recently been repaired by a local framing specialist. Here is a photo of the back of it - you can see the 4 metal braces where the repair took place: The wall it needs to go on is a 9mm plasterboard with 30mm insulation board on top. As you can see in the photo the frame already has two D rings fixed to the frame for hanging from two hooks. I would like to put any fixings into the studs which are 400mm apart. Unfortunately to get the picture in the centre of the room, both D rings fall more or less halfway between studs. Would anyone be able to provide some advise on the most secure way to hang this please? The two options I've thought of are: Rotate the D rings 90 degrees so they point each other, attach a cord/wire, and hang on two screws screwed into the 2 closest studs (roughly 200mm from each D ring) Hang using 2 hooks to match the current position of the D rings, and fix into the plasterboard using some kind of drywall fixing. If going for the cord/wire option, do I want to use a cord or wire? And should it be attached taut or with plenty of slack? If fixing to drywall I would assume a metal spring toggle would be the most suitable - however I've never seen drywall fixings used where there is insulation board in front of the plasterboard, and not really visualise if that gets in the way of the fixing at all? Also should I worry about the stability of the frame at all after the snap and repair? The braces look to be strong but I suppose the frame still won't have its full original strength? Any advise would be much appreciated! I'm just really nervous that if not done properly, the picture will fall one day and knock someone out... <Q> Leave some slack in the wire, as that will give you some scope for adjustment to make sure it can hang level. <S> Usually, I'd suggest picture hooks, but with insulation in front of the plasterboard, my suggestion would be to drive decent length screws into the studs, leaving the head protruding a little, and hang the picture wire over the screw heads <A> Depending on your taste, and the number of pictures you'll be hanging. <S> Here are a few other options... Picture Rail Picture rail is a type of molding that is installed around the top of the room, about 7-9 feet above the floor. <S> You then use picture wire, and picture rail hooks to hang pictures. <S> Many different types of hooks can be found, from very basic to ornate. <S> They can even be custom made, to suit your style. <A> The picture should be hung using braided steel picture wire between the two D rings. <S> Pictures need two support points to both spread the load and to allow a steady hang that does not swing. <S> I would strongly recommend Ook type hooks <S> The heavy duty versions can support up to about 100 lbs. <S> If the surface is not as solid as drywall, consider using anchors with hooks attached. <S> A discussion of various kinds of anchors can be found here .
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I'd use picture wire between the two D-rings to hang the picture. Picture Ledge Picture ledges are also an option, and come in many shapes, sizes, and styles.
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Nicely mounting 2x4s to wall I would like to make some bookshelves similar to what is seen here: My question is how to nicely mount these to the wall. Obviously I could simply angle some screws into the wall studs, however I think that'd look a bit messy and would like to hide the mounting method. <Q> I'd try a few of these keyhole mounting plates: <S> You'd need to be very precise with screw placement so everything lines up properly. <S> If you're feeling adventurous, you could chisel or route out a recess so the whole thing is flush against the wall. <S> Another alternative would be to drill mostly through the stock, screw directly into the wall, and plug the holes with dowel. <A> You might consider mounts like z-clips <S> These are listed as 1 7/8 inches high overall, but you might be able to trim the height (a little off the top piece, a little off the bottom) to just a bit less than the thickness of a 2x4, recess them into the back of the piece, leaving a small lip of wood at the top to conceal the mount (the bottom would have to be open to allow the piece to slide down onto the wall mounted section). <S> I would try to make sure the wall side was mounted to studs, preferably on both walls. <A> You could create a mounting strip using a dovetail router bit. <S> Route out a dovetail slot along the backside of the long 2x4's. <S> Top and bottom if you want, or just the top. <S> (Bottom half of picture.) <S> Create the mounting strip. <S> (Top half of picture.) <S> Pre-drill holes in the mounting strip to line up with the studs in your wall. <S> Mount the strip on the wall. <S> Slide the shelf on. <A> I find all the above answers to be quite good, but each is too busy for my tastes ... too many pieces, specialty hardware etc ... <S> My solution would be to ... locate the studs drive 2.5" nails into the studs such that <S> they angle upwards <S> have 1 <S> " exposed <S> I'd use either of these 8d or 10d nails: box nails, and a pair of vise-grips or slip-joints to cut off the heads after nailing finish or casing nails, and not cut off anything then drill matching 1/4" holes into the back of the 2x4s. <S> Done. <S> No need to shop for specialty hardware, or run to the store, or go through router setups and associated issues. <S> Plus, requires only one hole in the sheetrock per attachment as opposed to 2 or more. <S> BOX NAILSPenny <S> Length Gauge Diameter inches inches <S> 2d 1 15½ <S> 0.067 3d <S> 1¼ <S> 14½ <S> 0.076 <S> 4d <S> 1½ <S> 14 <S> 0.080 <S> 5d 1¾ <S> 14 <S> 0.080 <S> 6d 2 <S> 12½ 0.099 <S> 7d 2¼ 12½ 0.099 <S> 8d 2½ 11½ <S> 0.113 <S> 9d 2¾ <S> 11½ <S> 0.11310d <S> 3 <S> 10½ <S> 0.12812d <S> 3¼ <S> 10½ 0.12816d <S> 3½ 10 <S> 0.13520d 4 9 0.14830d <S> 4½ <S> 9 0.14840d 5 8 <S> 0.162
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You could also mount the plates to the wall at a stud, using sufficiently long screws, and then use smaller screws on the shelf to clip in.
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How should I prepare a plywood subfloor for vinyl sheet flooring? I'm planning on replacing the carpet in my dining room with a vinyl sheet flooring. I know I need to get the carpet, padding and any staples/debris cleaned up before laying the vinyl, but do I need to do any other prep work on the plywood subfloor (ie. fill cracks between sheets of plywood, etc.)? <Q> Vinyl isn't very thick, and it is quite plastic. <S> This means that over time, it will conform to the shape of the floor beneath. <S> This means that you will see grooves in the vinyl where there are gaps between the plywood sheets. <S> This means you want the sub-floor to be as smooth as possible. <S> BUT!!! <S> ! <S> you need gaps between the sheets to allow for expansion or else you risk having the sub-floor develop a slight buckle. <S> Here's what I would do under ideal circumstances <S> : Spend some time screwing down the existing floor to the joists. <S> This is likely the only opportunity you will have to do so. <S> Get some 1/8" Hardboard, Lauan or birch plywood (one side smooth) and lay it down without gaps over the sub floor. <S> At this thickness, you can staple it down. <S> smooth any edges/fill any gaps. <S> Lay your vinyl. <S> However, you need to make the call as to the quality of the existing floor the level of imperfection you are willing to tolerate. <S> It may not be worth the extra expense and labour to do it this way. <S> In which case, I would fill the worst gaps, sand down the worst edges, and lay down the vinyl. <A> Replace any substandard panels. <S> Then use a leveling compound to "erase" any knots or gaps in the wood. <S> If there are holes, plug them with a dowel or other similar means, sand smooth and (if needed) <S> use leveling compound to smooth them out. <S> Also, stomp around on the subfloor to identify any loose edges and squeaks. <S> If you find any, screw the areas securely to the floor joists. <S> Beware of squeaks coming from the floor joists, though typically most are caused by the subfloor edges rubbing against itself or against the joists. <A> Correct ..tie all floor joists with metal hangers and blocks ..pull rotten ones out replace new ..screw down birch finish plywood one side smooth unsmooth and rough side and holes down .float <S> any troops after or even better retire floor joists level,before sub floor .. <S> float only with super hard floater do not use spackle or joint compound <S> that's nasty and does not work .. <S> it crumbles and molds and cracks .. <S> you can glue and screw sub floor if clean and new you can primer too as long as primer is pacificly for adhesive going down for glue ..we also use a weed burner to heat up raised commercial flooring pvc vinyl .. but don't burn it just get it warm .. <S> it lasts 20 years with high foot traffic ski boots snowmaking run off and floods water .. <S> if on concrete power wash wet vac dry float heat up roll as you lay it down
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After making sure the surface is clear of all miscellaneous stuff (staples, nails, tacks, etc.), inspect for dry rot or weak areas—hammering the surface to test strength every foot or two would not be overkill.
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Why is my gas stove taking 30+ seconds to light? I have a gas cooktop that takes a really long time to ignite. You have to hold down the ignitor and it clicks for an absurd amount of time (30+ seconds) before the burner ignites. Everything after that works fine. After you have been cooking for a while, if you turn the burner off then back on within a few minutes, it will light quicker (<5 seconds). All the burners are like this. Using a stick lighter or a match has the same problem with lighting. What do I need to check? Could the ignitor be bad? Not enough gas coming through to the burners? Clogged burners? <Q> The problem is clearly with the gas feed. <S> If other portions (like other burners) work okay, the plumbing in common to those and further upstream is all fine. <S> The problem would be the last portions to the burners. <S> I would start by removing the grate, lifting off the burner caps, and lift up the burner assemblies. <S> Any foreign matter in there? <S> If there is goo, run them through the dishwasher, toothpaste and an old toothbrush, or a steel wool cleaning pad and water to get it off. <S> Have a look at the igniter tips <S> : are they clean and shiny? <S> Do the heavily used tips look similar to the lightly used tips? <S> 200–400 grit sandpaper is the easy fix for these. <S> Place the burners back into position carefully, making sure each seats securely and aligns with the igniter. <S> Place the caps back on paying attention to the alignment of the nub-like posts underneath (which keeps them from sliding off) <S> so they don't cause a gap by making the cap sit up on a post. <S> If that doesn't renew performance, it is either a valve or plumbing problem. <S> I would call an appliance repairman at that point for his/her knowledge of the exact problems with that model as well as the range of solutions and prices. <A> I wonder if there is air getting into the gas lines. <S> Do you smell gas during the 30 seconds of ignitor <S> clicks before the burner finally lights? <S> (On my stove if I turn the gas on but don't light the burner I smell gas almost right away.) <S> Air in the lines would explain the same behavior with another ignition source, and also the shorter delay in relighting a burner. <S> But I have no idea how air would get into a gas line or what the ramifications of that would be. <S> Presumably if air is getting in then gas is getting out. <S> Have you noticed higher than normal gas bills? <S> If your gas meter is accessible you might be able to compare readings before and after you're away, although you would need to make sure that any other gas-consuming appliances are off (hot water heater, furnace, etc.). <A> 30 seconds or more for burner to light: <S> My GE gas cooktop was taking 30 to 60 <S> To light the burner. <S> There was no gas flow during that time. <S> The pressure regulator is mounted on the incoming pipe below the unit. <S> I change the regulator and the problem went away. <A> Sometimes when you clean your stove you can push crumbs into the holes which blocks the gas. <S> Just fixed one at the apartment complex <S> I work at. <S> Good luck!
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The problem is caused by sticky gas pressure regulator.
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Can I install windows into a concrete rough opening without wood buck? I recently cut two holes in my foundation and installed new windows. I lined my hole with 2x8 PT wood bucks that I attached to the masonry with Tapcon screws. Then I attached my window nailing flange to the wood buck. All seemed to work fine. Now I would like to replace some of the other windows in the room (basement). The existing windows are a reasonable size, but because they are old steel frame, and the frame is very thin, the effective window area is very close to the same size as the hole in the block wall. If I follow the same strategy as I described above, then by the time I add the wood buck and a modern vinyl window, my effective window area is reduced by about 4.5" on each side! (1.5" for the buck, 3" for the vinyl window frame). The resulting window would be tiny. I am looking for a way to maximize the final size of the window without having to cut away any more block. Does anyone here have experience attaching the window directly to the masonry opening, and skipping the wood buck? For small windows, I have heard of people essentially floating the window in the rough (cmu) opening with spray foam - no nails or screws! - but I am a little hesitant to pursue this option... For reference I am in Anchorage AK. <Q> Just get replacement windows instead of new construction and use tapcons to fasten the windows through the sides. <S> Caulk outside good to keep out water. <S> Foundation should also be graded away from the window to keep out water. <A> I work in Manhattan, and windows are installed like this all the time. <S> Snap off the nailing flange and attach a strap to the window. <S> The straps can be anchored further back. <S> As for a slope to drain away water typically in the city we see stone sills with a bevel to drain out, it's typically only a 5 to 8 degree angle. <S> I would confer to your original conditions. <S> If you had a steel window and it was in good shape with the original grade then as long as you have a solid caulk joint <S> you should be fine. <S> Basement windows are usually buried in snow and will get a large amount of water during a thaw; I would recommend an awning type window as it will seal a lot better and deal with water issues more so then a slider. <A> Without seeing the issues, here in south fla installing Windows is a different world but the supplier should be able to get an equal leg window vs a flanged window. <S> Hope it helps <A> All you need is shims and Spray Foam. <S> Shim the window on all four sides Square in the opening. <S> The Sims will hold the window tight, let the spray foam dry and take out the shims and fill the holes with spray foam. <S> Spray foam alone can handle 150 mile an hour cross winds that's 25 miles an hour more than just screws.
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No use some round backer rod and place that around all four sides on the exterior and then caulk the window to the concrete with backer rod preventing three-way sealing or attaching of the caulking. And yes there is an edge distance for tapcons, more so in our area, they should be able to tell you depending on the diameter of tapcon.
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How can I calculate the power consumption of an A/C unit? I have an AC unit with the following specs: Cooling Capacity: 1260 kcal/h, 1.47kW, 5000 Btu/hFan Motor Power: 0.034 kWCurrent: 0.155 A My question is how much power does this unit actually consume in an hour? Does it use 1.47kW constantly? Btw it's a York unit. Is that a good brand? <Q> It will only draw that level of power when the compressor is running. <S> In normal circumstances it will cycle on and off to chill the cooling element as needed; the rest of the time only the fan will be running to blow air over them. <S> The amount of power consumed will vary depending primarily on how hot it is and what temperature you have the AC set to. <S> To find out how much power it's actually using, you'll need to use a power meter of some sort. <S> I'm partial to the Kill-a-Watt if they're available where you live. <A> You do not have enough information to calculate the electrical power consumed during operation. <S> The three quantities listed, 1260 kcal/hr, 1.47 kW and 5000 BTU/hr, all represent the same power level, simply given in different units. <S> They all give, as stated, the cooling capacity : the rate of heat energy removal from the cooled space. <S> A particular air-conditioner has a dimensionless number called the Coefficient of Performance . <S> It is defined as the ratio of Energy Removed to Energy Consumed. <S> This value, usually around 4 to 8, divided into your cooling capacity (preferably in kW), will give the electrical power consumption of the unit when running... <A> Another possibility: Turn off most of the appliances in your house, especially anything that cycles, like your refrigerator. <S> The procedure for this varies between meters, but if you call your power company, they might be able to tell you how to do it. <S> Turn on your A/C, let it run for a few minutes, and again figure out how much power your house is using. <S> Subtract one from the other to get the power consumption of your A/C.
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Go to your electric meter and figure out how much power your house is using.
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Anyone have an idea about unidentified constant noise/vibration in single-family house? I cannot find the source of a constant noise & vibration that have recently (month or so) been happening in our single-family house. I've asked 2 different people, including our handyman, who checked several things, but so far only I have been able to hear/feel it. We are hundreds of feet away from any neighbors. I've lived in several apartments and if this weren't a single-family not right next to anyone I'd be sure the noise I was hearing was either 1) a neighbor in an apartment below (only a crawlspace there) playing either an upright bass, constantly day in, day out, or music with a deep bass line.. or 2) Someone's tv on very loud at a distance, or 3) An engine of a machine of some sort with a low, constant, repetitive bass sound. Rapid Boom boom boom boom, Boom boom boom boom, over and over; I can feel the vibration in my feet or in my hand if I put it on the wall. The house has electric baseboard heat, there is no furnace. There is a new sump pump that was installed around the time of the noise starting, cut the circuit to it off, no difference in the sound. Unplugged the fridge, no difference in the sound. I walked around the entire neighborhood trying to hear if it was coming from someone's house; nothing. The only thing we haven't tried is cutting off all electricity to the house. I guess that will be next. It's beginning to really wear on me just as though a neighbor were playing loud music non-stop on and on and on, and I'm afraid it will begin to affect my health if it keeps up. Does anyone here have any ideas, suggestions? I hope??!! <Q> Throwing the main breaker on your electric panel is easy; you should try that. <S> If cutting the power to the whole house stops the problem, then turn the power back on and start turning off circuits one-by-one. <S> Hopefully they're labeled so you can identify the appliance or room, but this may take some trial-and-error. <S> Here are some other possibilities I can think of: Pump for well water (if you have it). <S> Some other vibration coming in via municipal water line (although I can't imagine what would cause repetitive vibrations from a water main). <S> An exhaust fan: maybe in your attic? <S> Radon mitigation fan (these typically run 24/7, drawing air out of your basement/crawlspace, through a duct). <A> Is there any chance that, with the new sump, you also had a radon mitigation fan installed? <S> A radon mitigation fan runs continuously. <S> They are placed outside the living space - so in the attic, or sometimes in a box on the side of the house. <S> They are not small. <S> Failing that, I suggest you go put your hands on the sump cover to see if you feel it there. <A> Several things to check for: <S> Any construction activity in the neighborhood? <S> Deep-earth vibrations can travel several miles under the right conditions. <S> Have you checked with your closest neighbors to see if they're running music non-stop? <S> This happens, my neighbors are a little funky, and the first few months in our house was painful until we got used to it. <S> Don't laugh, but where do you live? <S> You might want to read up on the Taos Hum . <S> Happens all over. <A> It is a very low sound? <S> Low sounds can travel much further and often are incredibly hard to discern direction from. <S> I use to live in a house where, at night, in certain rooms I could hear the hum of parked refrigerator cars from the rail lines a few miles away. <S> Few others could hear it. <S> So, the good news is that you probably have really good hearing. <S> Alas, that's also the bad news. <S> If it's a low sound, it's really impossible to say what it is. <A> I had something similar to this in the house <S> I grew up in. <S> It was the doorbell transformer attached to a junction box in the crawlspace. <A> If you have a radon mitigation system, then you may want to go outside of your home and turn off the fan to see if the deep base vibration stops. <S> If so, then your fan maybe iced up and need to defrost or you may have other issues with your fan that need to be addressed.
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If you have (or the house ever had) a hardwired doorbell system, look around for the transformer it probably has. If you do get water from your city/town, try to find the main service entrance and put your hand on it, to see if the pipe is vibrating. It could very well be some mechanical sound coming from some distance away just happening to bounce off the right objects to find its way into your ears.
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Why is my gas furnace vibrating when blowing hot air but not when blowing cold air? I have a gas furnace. I recently replaced a bad blower motor. At that time I also cleaned out the blower housing and squirrel cage. The AC runs fine with no vibrations or any symptoms of an off balance squirrel cage. However, when I turn on the heat, the furnace vibrates. I think it is coming from the blower, but it seems to be turning freely and again, it runs fine with the AC. Does the blower fan spin at different speeds for hot vs cold air, and could it still be an out of balance squirrel cage? Could something else be causing the vibration? It sounds like an slightly out of balance washer on a spin cycle. <Q> The blower very likely does spin at different speeds when heating vs. cooling. <S> This is not uncommon at all. <S> In heating mode they typically are on a low speed, while in cooling or fan mode they are typically on high speed. <S> As others have said, it may also be the case that you have an induced draft blower for your gas furnace that is causing the vibration, but these are typically much smaller blowers than the "main" blower. <A> This could be a bad draft inducer motor. <S> This is a little motor that runs for a short while whenever your thermostat calls for heat and the furnace is in its initial firing + warmup stage. <S> Our furnace failed this component (when it was only around 2yrs old), and the entire house would know when the furnace started running. <S> Vibrations around the equipment itself, plus severe knocking / rubbing / creaking sounds at some of the registers nearest the furnace <S> are generally an indicator of your inducer motor. <A> The blower motor - or squirrel cage like you call it- <S> , is not the only moving part in the furnace; there is another motor which only runs when your A/C system is blowing hot air,its purpose is to expel the combustion gases produced by the burning fuel, usually natural gas. <S> It is commonly called 'Exhaust Fan" . <S> This could be what is causing the vibration/noise whenever you are using the heat. <S> This fan is often located right below or aside the duct that protrudes from the top or side of your furnace and exits thru the roof of your house
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As such, it could certainly be the case that there is some imbalance in your blower that excites a harmonic frequency of your furnace at low speed, but when the blower is turning faster at high speed, no sympathetic vibrations are excited; hence vibrations with heat, but not with A/C.
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Why would a short cause the main breaker to trip instead of the branch circuit breaker? In our home, we have two electrical panels. One main panel (in the basement) and a sub panel on the first floor. The lights to the kitchen on the first floor run to a breaker in this sub panel. We installed a dimmer incorrectly and accidentally tripped the breaker in the sub panel. However, at the same time, the main panel in the basement shutoff and the entire electrical system shut down. It was our understanding that when you cause a short, it would cause only the one breaker to trip, but not the entire system. This has made us wonder if our main/sub panel setup is functioning correctly, or if there is an issue that requires further investigation. The installation of the sub/main panel was done by certified electricians. <Q> I don't think this indicates a problem. <S> Circuit breakers have at least 2 different triggers for cutting the power: <S> Thermal mechanism for small over-current protection, e.g. trying to draw 20 amps from a 15 amp circuit. <S> This may take several seconds or even more than a minute, depending on how much over the rated capacity you are. <S> Magnetic mechanism for short-circuit protection, which should kick in around 20x the rated ampacity. <S> This should trip the breaker virtually instantly. <S> You can look up the time-current curve for your breakers if you're curious how long it takes them to trip under different conditions. <S> (There may be additional features that cause the breaker to trip, such as arcing or ground fault detection.) <S> However, for a short-circuit condition (which I assume you had with your dimmer), either one could go. <S> It's a little surprising that both tripped, but there is a slight delay in response time <S> so it's not inconceivable. <S> (Actually, you could have had 3 different breakers trip: the breaker for the circuit, the breaker for the sub panel feed, and the main breaker). <A> In a short circuit condition, there are very high currents. <S> As previously stated, the initial over drawing heats a bi-metallic strip that acts as a thermal cutout for excessive loads. <S> The second is a small coil inside the breaker that when exposed to high currents (short circuit) acts exactly like an electromagnet and pulls the breaker open immediately. <S> Once the short circuit condition happens anywhere in your system, it can potentially travel through everything using the bonding connection at the neutral bus and grounding bus and travel back up the main neutral to the supply transformer. <S> What happened in your house is how you pray your electrical system works. <S> You got a free test on your equipment and it operates exactly as designed!! <A> Whether it's a bulb blowing or an appliance failing in our house, the main 80A / 30mA RCD breaker always trips but the Type B MCBs for the individual circuits (e.g. lights, sockets, cooker, shower, immersion heater etc.) never do. <S> Surely that indicates that the panel is incorrectly wired or that the main breaker is too sensitive.
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If your circuit had tripped because of a slight over current, such as too many appliances running at the same time, only the breaker for that individual circuit should have tripped.
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How can I remove old paint from wooden door frames? There is paint in almost all door frames in my home. All of them were done because of clumsy paint job years ago. The paint is normal wall color (water soluble). I really need to get rid of the paint. What I am looking is a way to do it without hurting my hands for hours using a wet sponge and without having to remove the whole frame from each door. <Q> Dried paint does not come of with a wet sponge, even if it is water based. <S> There is a plasticizer in the paint which hardens as it dries and loses it water solubility. <S> There are several techniques, and which one will work depends on many factors, such as the finish on the door frames before painting, the cleanliness of those frames, the type and age of the paint, etc. <S> You can also use a plastic putty knife, but that edge is usually not sharp enough. <S> Use a metal scraper <S> - harder to do without damaging the underlying finish, but if done very gently and carefully, it may get most off. <S> Follow up the above two methods with a utility knife (a razor blade-like knife). <S> Use it sideways as a scraper just on the painted area. <S> Use a pot scrubbing pad - <S> (but this involves wet hands that you don't like; try latex gloves) use a cleaning solution. <S> Mask the adjoining wall first to avoid scraping paint that you want to keep. <S> Sanding - if all of the above fail, you can try a sanding block or sponge. <S> This will definitely get it off but will cut through the finish n <S> the molding mandating at least a partial refinishing. <S> This may be the only technique that gets out the fine lines of white in the grain of the wood as shown in your pictures, unless you want to try to carefully dig it out with an xacto-type knife (a very narrow craft knife). <S> For all of these techniques, the molding finish may be damaged. <S> If so, you can touch it up with a polyurethane (assuming the color in the damaged areas is not too different from the finished areas). <S> You might try a rub-on poly if the gloss is close to the existing one. <S> It is more forgiving in application. <A> You're going to end up sanding that off to get it perfect. <S> Take a piece of molding to the paint store and find a close color match for the edge you sanded (you can test the stain colors on the back side of the board, which no one will see once installed. <S> Apply a coat of polyurethane or my favorite, spar urethane, which doesn't yellow as much over time. <S> Paint your room, then reattach the trim, fill the nail holes and apply one final coat of urethane. <A> Paper towels soaked in laquer thinner and applied (taped to vertical wood) to the painted surface for about an hour will lift the paint layer and then a spatula can be used to lift the paint layer from the wood. <S> Put a layer of plastic or wax paper over the paper towels to prevent evaporation of the solvent. <S> If there is a layer of varnish underneath the paint, the laquer thinner will not penetrate the varnish; it will penetrate shellac. <S> Be sure the area in which this procedure is being done is well ventilated!
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It works best if you remove the molding, use a palm sander with 60 grit paper initially, then a 120 grit to finish sanding it, once the paint is off. There are specialty scrapers called cabinet scrapers that are especially suited to careful work like this. Try using a plastic scraper - use the edge of a credit card (not an active one) held almost perpendicular to the molding and scrape downward.
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How can I fill gaps in wall plates on an uneven backsplash? We're having a new house built, and the kitchen backsplash that was just installed is a tumbled stone, which looks great, but isn't a flat surface. As a result, the wall plates for electrical outlets, switches and phone jacks don't sit quite flush. Is there something that can be done about this, to fill the gaps with some sort of caulking or something, or is this just something I have to accept? <Q> There are insulating gaskets for switches and outlets like these <S> They would help seal against air leaks, but they might not visually fill the gaps at the edge of a switch plate. <S> There are also deep beveled switch plates, such as those found here . <S> Also, caulking will make removal of the cover plate a bit more difficult. <A> CAULK IT!!! <S> Work like an artist not a contractor. <S> DON'T <S> "smush caulk everywhere then wonder why it looks like butt when finished. <S> Use ONLY what you need and "tool it in/ <S> smooth it out" using a damp finger, wiping frequently. <S> I have been known to mask off the rectangle around the wall plates prior to starting (duct tape works very well on stone). <S> I recommend trying to find Polyseamseal in your stone's matching color. <S> There are also many colors to choose from (not Polyseamseal but still good stuff) back by the tile and grout section of H-D & Lowes. <S> I just remembered another job I did that resulted in miracle stuff. <S> I used clear caulking (NOT sillycone or butyl!!! <S> Use latex/acrylic only). <A> You could work out what the gaskets that are made of that were linked in @bib's answer. <S> It may be possible to purchase similar material from a place like McMaster-Carr that you could cut larger than the cover plate. <S> Then install the cover plates with the material in place. <S> After installed use a very sharp razor blade type knife to trip the excess material away using the edge of the cover plate as a guide. <S> Be careful to not gouge into your back splash material. <S> Another idea that comes to mind...if you are using white cover plates, is that you could go to the hardware store and get a couple of rolls of the self stick type weather strip material that is about a half inch wide. <S> This could be adhered to the back of the cover plate so that it is projecting out beyond the cover plate by some amount. <S> The try installing the cover plate and see if you can trim off the excess like I described above. <S> Either of these schemes may not work very well at all if the cover plates are too flexible. <A> Easy to do: Pull off the uneven tiles around the outlet <S> Select tiles that are the same thickness or cut to fit Reset
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You could custom grind these down with a dremel-type tool to fit the highs and lows of the surface, but that would be a pretty time consuming task. While you probably could caulk the gaps, you should be careful to avoid getting any into the box and wiring itself. Again, I masked off rectangle + added a second coat of clear caulk to compensate for initial shrinkage, then I painted the caulking with EXACT matching paint which I mixed (you will only need a Tablespoon) using one of my daughter's artist brushes.
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What could be tripping multiple GFCI breakers? I have 14 ground fault circuits split 7 on each side of my panel. I have recently had 5 or six trip on the left side and 1 or 2 on the right. It happens at all hours. It appears I have some kind of problem mainly on the left. It is a Square D box with all square D breakers and a single ground stake.I have had all trip in bad storms before. Thinking maybe I need to add more ground stakes. Any ideas of what could be tripping the breakers like this? <Q> So Pat, the OP has not been seen since the day they posted, in Oct 2013. <S> Hopefully this will be of help to new viewers <S> I had to comment that I highly doubt they have 14 GFCI breakers in their panel. <S> I would all but guarantee that they are referring to AFCI breakers, and they are experiencing nuisance trips. <S> Could even be that the breakers are the early SqD AFCI breakers that were recalled. <S> This was very common of early AFCI breakers which is why you see so many subsequent incarnations. <S> I'll also add that grounding and bonding, or the absence thereof, would have NOTHING to do with nuisance tripping of AFCI or GFCI breakers. <A> I had a similar issue when some power-factor-correction capacitors were failing down the road from me. <S> One night, the capacitors blew up, and the problem ceased. <S> We were having lights flicker occasionally, too. <S> Perhaps a failing transformer could cause this issue. <S> These are all things that your power company is responsible for (and a customer can't repair). <S> One thought is that there's some sort of intermittent short between neutral and ground, but this would generally effect only one circuit at a time.... <S> Take a look at the service entrance (mast attached to roof?). <S> Perhaps the insulation is failing on the line going to your house and causing intermittent opens or shorts. <S> If so, get help from your power company or an electrician because a homeowner can't de-energize the electric service. <A> GFCI's work on the principle of a differential current transformer. <S> If the difference between line and neutral is > few mA or so, they trip the breaker, on the assumption that the difference in current is flowing via ground wire thus a potential hazard wherever that current may be flowing. <S> If ground were to be open (fault) then a hazardous leakage current might be the cause. <S> But in your case a false alarm. <S> The distribution transformer is grounded to Neutral for the split line power. <S> If you also have GFCI's installed at your panel then have Neutral grounded anywhere in the home, then you have an imbalanced Return Path in your home which can trigger faults on transients. <S> Do you notice lights flickering on any circuits that do not trip, when these events occur? <A> All of my GFCI breakers would trip, one by one, over the course of about 6 hours. <S> Based on posts here, I opened the panel to check for loose nuetrals and found it swarming with ants, a few leaves and spider webs. <S> I shut off the main breaker, lifted all the other breakers, and blasted the panel with compressed air. <S> I shot a can of contact cleaner in, avoiding the service entry lines, and some outdoor insect killer around the sides and cable entry points. <S> After putting everything back together the problem was solved. <A> Unless your structure is incorrectly wired (like a lot of those circuits being tied together somewhere), the only thing in common to the failing GFCIs is the power feed. <S> I would start by a) shutting off the main breaker, and b) opening the main breaker panel and inspecting the main leads, especially the neutral/ground from the meter. <S> Give them a firm tug and make sure they are extremely secure. <S> Be sure to stay clear of the wires from the meter to the main breaker: They are live! <S> Even though the main breaker is off. <S> Also, examine the neutral bus connection(s) to the ground/neutral terminal strips: <S> In every Square D panel I have seen, there are bolts which connect the bus bars together. <S> Other brands may use a heavy wire with each end in an eye nut arrangement which goes over a bolt into the bus bars. <S> Next check that the ground rod is intact and the wire which goes into the service panel is securely connected at both ends. <S> If there is any doubt, go ahead and remove it for a few minutes to polish the copper wire and rod into the clamp with 100–400 grit sandpaper, wire brush, steel wool, etc. <S> Next, look at the meter and service wires (if above ground). <S> Are they in good shape? <S> If all of those are beyond question, call the power company. <S> They will probably repeat the latter steps, but will eventually escalate it to a electric technician which will come armed with a meter to see what is going on. <S> They probably have a faulty neutral or bad ground on their side. <A> breakers, not ground fault. <S> If this problem has existed since they were installed, it could be improper installation, for example in multi-wire circuits.
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There could be issues with a faulty connection in the supply to the breaker panel. Especially, if there was recent wiring work, check that all those circuits have their neutrals properly run to the breaker, the "curly white wire" secure in the ground bus, and all the grounds securely in the ground bus. It's possible you have AFCI (or CAFCI) To check, Turn off master breakers disconnect neutral and measure home neutral to ground voltage then resistance or ask an Electrician to test.
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How should I remove a raised concrete pad on my basement floor? I have a raised square of concrete, about 42" by 42" by 6" in my basement.Its probably an "equipment pad" of some sort, not sure what it was originally for, but it is inconveniently placed.Its poured directly onto the slab. I'm sure I can just go down with a sledge and whack it away, then smooth over with instant concrete but, I'm not experienced with basement slabs so what do I need to know? Whats the quickest way to remove the thing and smooth things over with minimum fuss and mess? <Q> Note: <S> The pad should weigh about 815 pounds (370 kg) <S> so light duty efforts are inappropriate. <S> Obtain two heavy steel digging bars like this along with some scrap 2x4s or similar. <S> With heavy gloves on, try to wedge the pointy end into the joint between the pad and floor by holding it mostly horizontal, but still a down angle of 30 <S> ° <S> so the point is against the floor and firmly swing it into position. <S> so the flat end of the digging bar can get a grip underneath the pad. <S> If you can establish a catching point, place a 2x4 3–4 inches away from the edge and use it as a fulcrum to lift the pad. <S> Recall leverage basics: If you push down on the far end of the bar with 100 pounds force and the fulcrum is one-tenth the distance from the other end, that is a 10:1 force gain, so you will be applying 1000 pounds of lift. <S> If you can get it off the floor, insert the other bar with another (or a shared) fulcrum to raise it 1.5 inches off the floor. <S> Slide in a 2x4 to support it at the lifted edge (this probably requires one or two helpers) and withdraw the bars. <S> Once the pad is mechanically separated, have some Wheaties and then swing a heavy sledge hammer (15+ pounds) <S> approximately one-third the distance away from the supported edge. <S> It is easiest to crack the pad by starting close to the edge. <S> Don't be discouraged if you don't see any cracks even after a dozen husky whacks—especially with six inches. <S> Each impact is being absorbed and is weakening the pad. <S> However, while it is intact, it is strongest. <S> Persist and it will soften, crumble, and eventually break. <S> After the first crack, it will become much easier to break up. <S> Break it into convenient-to-carry pieces and dispose. <S> Clean up underneath. <S> Probably the floor will be in good condition if the pad was added much later than the floor. <S> Otherwise, you might have to sand down bits that stick and smooth the floor. <A> No easy way. <S> I would rent a jack hammer. <A> Easier to pour more cement in basement and raise rest of floor to same level (sorry, that prolly was NOT funny) <S> good luck, is no easy way but jack hammer then skim
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If it was poured onto an already existing slab, I would try separating it from the slab first to see if it can be broken away and leave the floor intact. Or use a hammer and cold chisel to chip out a notch right next to the floor
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Why did insulation and vapor barrier cause mold in my storage shed? I recently installed insulation in my garden shed and covered it with a plastic vapor barrier. This was done in the summer when the weather was warm and sometime humid. Shortly after I'd finished this installation I removed the plastic from the walls so I could install some electrical. when I pulled down the insulation I found black mold. My question is why would mold be present and why so fast? I thought I insulated correctly. <Q> Vapour barrier goes on the cold side of the insulation. <S> The problem here is that for an unheated, Un-airconditioned shed, the outside will always be the cool side. <S> Insulation won't stop heat transfer, it only slows it down. <S> A closed shed, no matter how well insulated, will always turn into a sauna. <S> Now you have a hot, steamy inside, and a (relatively) cool outside (especially at night). <S> If you put the vapour barrier on the inside, sandwiching the insulation in, the condensation will occur within your insulation. <S> Hence, the mold issue. <S> You're better off without a vapour barrier in this situation. <S> This way the batts can dry out. <S> Even better would be some rigid foam insulation, but I really think that insulation in this situation is a waste of money. <A> It may not be a condensation issue. <S> Since the structure was built as a shed, it is likely that tar paper or tyvek or ... was not installed on the exterior. <S> Because of this, the sheathing/studs may simply be damp. <S> This, plus warm summer temperatures, is consistent with the very rapid appearance of your mildew/mold. <S> To get a final answer, you would need to provide more information about the walls, and about the shed's design, location and history. <S> For a more general house-oriented discussion: http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/qa-spotlight/vapor-barriers-are-good-thing-right <S> Joseph Lstiburek, Ph.D., P.Eng., ASHRAE Fellow website : <S> Things get wet from the inside, the outside, and they start out wet. <S> When the rate of wetting exceeds the rate of drying, accumulation occurs. <S> When the quantity of accumulated moisture exceeds the storage capacity of the material, problems occur. <S> Ideally, building assemblies should be designed to dry to both the interior and exterior. <S> In heating climates, the primary drying potential is to the exterior. <S> The drying potential of an assembly decreases with the level of insulation and increases with the rate of air flow. <S> As such, energy conservation has the potential to destroy more buildings than architects. <A> Sounds like circulating air from the outside caused the mold. <S> Vapour barrier always goes on the warm side, so please ignore previous cold side comment. <S> Good luck with every thing. <A> the black tar paper under the shingles was your vapor barrier, putting another barrier inside traps condensation, thus naturally occuring moisture from temp changes cant escape, you cant have 2 vapor barriers.
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Any wind/air that gets in from the exterior will carry moisture with it at some point. Because air circulation within the cavity is now severely restricted, such damp sheathing/etc would raise the humidity in the wall cavity sufficient for mildew/mold to grow on the damp surface.
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Should I use a GFCI or AFCI circuit breaker with knob and tube wiring? My American house was built in 1942, and much of the wiring is still knob-and-tube wiring (2-wire, no ground). Over the years new modern wiring has been added to the house, but we still have some KnT wiring for the ceiling lights, and a few branch circuits, etc. We are planning to replace the KnT wiring when we have the budget to do so. I have replaced many of the receptacles on the KnT circuits with GFCI receptacles to provide added protection, which is recommended. I have seen AFCI and GFCI circuit breakers which plug into the service panel, and they are reasonably priced at $30-50 per breaker). Would these AFCI or GFCI circuit breakers provide any protection on old, knob-and-tube wiring? <Q> Arc-Fault Circuit Interrupter (AFCI) <S> An arc-fault circuit interruption <S> device is designed to detect dangerous arcing within the protected circuit, and open (turn off) <S> the circuit to prevent damage caused by the arcing. <S> It does this using special circuitry to analyse the electrical characteristics of the circuit, looking for characteristics that match specific pre-programmed values. <S> If the AFCI detects suspicious goings on, it opens the circuit. <S> AFCI breakers are typically combination devices, meaning they also provide similar overcurrent and short-circuit protection to a standard breaker. <S> Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) Ground-fault circuit interruption <S> devices are designed to detect ground-faults, and open (turn off) the circuit when a ground-fault is detected. <S> They work by using a current transformer (CT) to detect current imbalances between the ungrounded (hot), and grounded (neutral) conductors of a circuit. <S> This blog entry might help you understand how GFCI devices work. <S> GFCI breakers are typically combination devices, meaning they also provide similar overcurrent and short-circuit protection to a standard breaker. <S> Installing a GFCI breaker on a circuit containing knob and tube wiring, probably won't provide any benefit. <S> GFCI devices are designed to prevent electrocution, not to protect the wiring. <S> Combination AFCI GFCI Circuit Breakers <S> Circuit breakers that provide AFCI, GFCI, overload, and overcurrent protection are becoming more widely available. <S> If you can find them for your panel (and afford therm), these would be the best option. <A> An AFCI is a great addition to K&T wiring. <S> While the conductors in K&T are separated by large distances, and even studs, they do come together at junction boxes which are often metallic. <S> An AFCI adds a layer of peace of mind to the situation. <S> Be sure to measure your K&T wire to determine gauge. <S> It can take slightly more current than the modern equivalent at the same wire size, but to be safe stick with the modern values. <S> You'll probably need a 2-pole (not tandem) <S> AFCI, as K&T was often wired with a shared neutral. <S> Fora more complete writeup of K&T retrofit see https://diy.stackexchange.com/a/20279/5960 <S> Note: when I replace a fixture in a K&T circuit I address the metal box weak point with some new loom, slipped over the wires as they come into the box. <S> The old loom, which could easily be 50 to 100 years old, is sometimes but not always brittle. <S> I'll also pull out the wire and wrap the exposed area with friction tape. <S> This is the only point in the entire K&T system that even needs insulation. <S> Update March 2018: I now use shrink tubing to strengthen the insulation when changing a fixture on old wiring. <S> It just slips over the old wire, and I shrink whatever section of it my heat gun can reag. <A> While Tester101's answer was OK when it was written, the situation has changed now. <S> CAFCI/GFCI dual function breakers (Square-D calls them DFCIs) are now widely available <S> online through the big-box stores' websites <S> ; in fact, the green box nearest to me has the QO DFCI I linked in stock! <S> Of course, any electrical supply house worth their weight <S> will be able to order in anything from the Eaton or Square-D catalogs, DFCI's included. <S> One caveat, though: DFCIs are not yet available in two-pole configurations, so shared neutral circuits without a ground wire are stuck with a CAFCI for now. <S> (It's one of those cases where perfect Code compliance is literally impossible at the moment because the parts needed to do it just don't exist yet.) <A> Your best best, if you can't do both, is AFCI breakers -- after all, AFCIs are designed to protect wiring from arc-faults, which start fires, and Knob-and-Tube era homes are vulnerable to this. <S> And then GFCI receptacles <S> -- GFCIs are designed to protect humans from shock. <S> As of NEC 2014 (adopted 2015-16 most places) <S> you can now retrofit grounds , and the ground wires do not need to run with the paired hot and neutral. <S> You can ground to any grounded point as long as it chains back to the same service panel, or the grounding electrode system from that panel. <S> The entire run/chain of ground wire must be large enough for the job.
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Installing a combination AFCI breaker on a circuit containing knob and tube wiring would be a great idea, and could potentially prevent a fire.
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Is it possible to use the ice maker on a refrigerator without a water supply line? Our department just moved physical locations. We were able to bring the fridge from our previous break room, but our new location does not have a water line anywhere nearby for the ice maker. The simple solution, of course, is to just use ice cube trays, but I would really like it to be constantly producing ice (not have to rely on coworkers to refill the trays). My thought is to get a 1-2 gallon container, and hook the water line into the bottom and then set it on top of the fridge. This way you can refill it in large quantities at once, rather than tray by tray. The container would be clear, to see the water level and to see if it needs to be cleaned, and with a lid to keep out dust. With the container sitting above the fridge, gravity should provide sufficient pressure to supply the maker with water. Would such a system work? Does anybody see any potential problems with setting up something like this? Are there any better alternatives? <Q> Well I don't know what your budget is, but you could go ahead and get a keg and a compressed air tank and hook it up to the refrigerator! <S> Easy 100psi, it'll make you 15 gallons of ice before refilling the keg (With water. <S> The keg is to be filled with water. <S> In case anyone missed that.) <S> Anyways now I have an awesome idea to use a fridge as a keg tap, if only I was in college where that'd be necessary. <S> Parts would be: 1 gallon compressor, for example: http://www.amazon.com/Senco-PC1010-1-Horsepower-1-Gallon-Compressor/dp/B0000AQK78/ http://www.amazon.com/DEWALT-D55140-1-Gallon-Trim-Compressor/dp/B000HZJMFM/ 3 to 5 gallon keg, for example: http://www.homebrewing.org/3-Gallon-Ball-Lock-Keg-W-Metal-Handles_p_3431.html <S> http://www.homebrewing.org/5-Gallon-Ball-Lock-Keg-W-Metal-Handles_p_3430.html <S> Barbed Liquid disconnect - http://www.homebrewing.org/Beer-Ball-Lock-Disconnect-Barbed_p_2915.html <S> Barbed Gas disconnect - http://www.homebrewing.org/Gas-Ball-Lock-White-Disconnect-Barbed_p_2916.html <S> Some food-safe 60psi tubing <S> Really easy version: Buy an entire homebrewing kit including tank and just put water in instead of beer, hook output up to fridge input. <S> Easy version: <S> Set regulator of the compressor to 50psi, connect hose directly to barbs of gas in port of the keg. <S> Hook the output port up to the fridge input. <S> Hard version <S> : Find a used compressor. <S> Experiment with tightening the pressure switch until it turns off at 50psi. <S> Remove compressor motor/pump assembly from tank, hook previous tank input up directly to keg, then keg output to fridge input. <A> You could use something like this bottled water dispensing pump system , from Ebay. <A> Comment converted to answer as per this suggestion <S> this GE document specifies a water pressure of 40-120 psi, for the ice maker to function properly. <S> The water pressure must be between 40 and 120 psi. <S> Pressures below 40 psi may cause a malfunction of the icemaker (i.e. producing hollow cubes or no ice production). <S> Which as BMitch points out in chat would mean the 1-2 gallon container would have to be about 100 ft. above the fridge. <S> Tester101: <S> How tall would a 1/4" tube have to be, to produce 40 psi at the bottom if it was filled with water? <S> BMitch: <S> if the link I found is correct, 93 feet <A> Another option would be to not use the icemaker in the refrigerator, and replace it with a countertop icemaker : <S> These are available in different capacities (and prices), and many are designed with a refillable water reservoir so it doesn't need to be connected to a water line. <S> As an added bonus, if your refrigerator icemaker is removable, you can free up some significant freezer space by removing it. <A> My refrigerator instructions (28 cuft frigidaire) says minimum of 20psi is needed. <S> You may want to check this product called flojet bw4000 , which is the simplest most reliable solution for using bottled water (5 gallon). <S> It can sit on the floor, or inside cabinet up to 20 feet away from your fridge. <A> Maybe too late, but obviously all above answers <S> just a bunch of not related BS.Obviously asked in original question setup would work, but with just one change:-- Use Dummy Fridge Water filter or just connect your water container directly to the output of the filter (not the input as required). <S> Anyway, anything that eliminates filter would work, as almost all pressure losses are to move water through it. <S> Everything should work. <S> If it doesn't -- It wasn't me who gave this answer... <A> I may do my method because the city water has chloromine and other cleaning agents, so I'm using spring water, in Google type micro water pumps <S> they are DC pumps. <S> Just one line, copper line needs to be pressurized at 50 psi, the plastic hose side doesn't need the pressure. <S> I'm a nice person. <S> It is easier to hook the pump either into custom on/off switch or plug in and uncle plug <S> You can take a 5 gallon jug, put water in it. <S> In the cap drill a hole for tubing, 6mm, the seal the water up, the short inlet hose will go into a micro pump, 20-100 psi in line pressure booster, 12 v, like coffee maker in wattage. <S> The connect the pump to 1/4" copper tubing down to the bottom of frigerator, you'll need a couple of elbow in copper, turn on pump. <S> The with water and ice maker, turn them on from off position, wait 24 hours till ice is made, or keep using for ice. <S> You'll need to shut the pump off when not using ice maker and or turn off water. <S> Total cost, bout 120 bucks, cause you micro pump will need a plug in. <S> The micro pumps -$20.00 <S> The plastic hose-$ 5.00 <S> The switch Broan variable power- <S> $40.00 <S> Soft 1/4" copper tubing - $20.00 <S> Little reducers / expanders $2.00 <S> 5 gallon water jug $20 Sealant for jug cap, with hole in cap -$3.00 <S> 10 dollars for beer
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Just buy big plastic water 1-2 gallon container, place it above fridge, make sure containers outlet is at the bottom (rotate it upside down), and make a whole at the top (original bottom), so air can easily get in.
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What should I do about excess flex in cement board that will be behind tile? This is around a tub/shower. The studs are spaced at 24in, cement board is 1/2in. We're surprised at how much flex there is between the sheets of cement board. I'm worried that tiles may pop off. We're planning to use 12in floor tiles on the wall. Some options I've considered: Leave it. It's fine. Aim the tile grout lines at the seams of the cement board. Flex won't affect whole tiles. Add blocking behind the seam. PITA. Add another layer of cement board, maybe 1/4", shifted over so the seams don't overlap. What should I do? If anything. <Q> Since they're up, I agree adding blocking is a PITA. <S> However, if its an inside wall that you have access to the other side of, use a "BIG GAP" polyurethane foam. <S> Drill a series of 1/4" holes every 12" down the middle of each joist bay. <S> Spray a 3 sec burst in each. <S> Wait 12 hr and try the flex, it should be quite firm now. <S> It won't hurt it, though. <A> What about adding 1/4" backer to 1/2" for firmness - Looks like a solution? <S> The tub has been installed so another stud can't be added. <A> In addition to optionally reinforcing the backer board with more studs or cross pieces where the seams will be, you should definitely fill the seams with either mud or grout. <S> The stuff you mix yourself, IMO, sets up much more firmly. <A> Sheet the wall with membrane like Kerdi (Schluter product) or Noble Flex. <S> It will tend to 'unitize' the wall (by spanning multiple pieces of cement board). <S> As an added benefit, it will completely waterproof the wall. <S> Its a bit belt-and-suspenders, but <S> I like my shower walls DRY.
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Be sure to embed with a portland cement based thin set mortar. You may not want to do this near the plumbing valve, for replacement purposes. In my bathroom I went with mud, but not the stuff you buy pre-mixed.
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Closing off Cold Storage Room We have a relatively new house (built in 2002) with a cold storage room under the poured concrete porch. There is a door with full weatherstripping leading to it. We'd really like to close it off (it has two vents to the outside) and turn it into a storage room (unheated), but not open to the outside to help control humidity levels. It's a relatively dry room (no pooling of water or anything). What's the best way to close off the two vents that go outside? They are about 6 inches in diameter and about 8 inches deep (from memory, it may be more). Or should they not be closed off? <Q> TL;DR <S> No, you shouldn't block off or remove the vents. <S> They serve a specific purpose. <S> Mold growth would be promoted, and it could also prematurely rot the structure of your home. <S> There would also be a foul smell which would be very hard to get rid of. <S> This area can still be used for storage, just make sure that whatever is down there is protected. <S> Plastic storage bins are perfect for storing small items. <S> You can also put up some hooks and shelving for other items. <S> One thing you would want to avoid is storing anything directly on the concrete floor. <S> You also want to make sure that rodents cannot get in through the vents. <S> You can install a piece of wire mesh over them on the inside to prevent them from entering. <S> Just make sure that the mesh is going to be strong enough to prevent them from chewing through it or pushing past it. <S> This space would also make a perfect root cellar. <S> There are some plans online here which will give you tips on how to do it. http://www.almanac.com/root-cellar-build <A> If it's untreated space, it'll need to vents to breath otherwise it'll end up super damp. <S> If you want to use it for storage, you probably need to look into sealing it and insulating and then using a vented door to allow the house to condition the space. <S> Since it wasn't designed for that, it may still have issues with dampness though. <S> I'm not sure if they build cold rooms to the same standards as regular basements. <A> I think it is best that you consult the experts on this one. <S> This is because I think there might just be issues of a leakage in the future since it used to once be a cold storage room. <S> There has to be a certain amount of moisture still available in there somewhere which might just leak without you knowing. <S> It is always better to be safe than sorry and when there is ponding, it might just be a little too late.
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Since this is an unheated area, any moisture which makes its way down there would stay there and cause problems. You could put old palettes or pieces of wood on the floor.
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How would I make a whiteboard for an odd sized space? I want to make a white board (or something that will work for dry erase markers) to go in a place that you can not really buy for. The space is only 10.5 inches high and 180 inches long. I was looking for a way that is not too expensive but still works well, One idea was to get a long piece of laminated paper to hang up. Does anyone know how I could do this? <Q> Dry erase paint is available from a few different manufacturers. <S> IdeaPaint Rust-Oleum Dry Erase Paint Are a couple examples. <S> When I was in college, I bought a sheet material from Home Depot that had a smooth white finish. <S> I don't remember what it was, but it worked well as a makeshift Whiteboard. <S> If I remember correctly, it was a thin sheet of MDF coated on one side with acrylic. <S> They sold it in 4x8' sheets, which could be easily cut to fit. <S> The only down side was that if marks were left on it for a long time, they had to be cleaned off using dry erase cleaner spray. <S> It may have been Thrifty White . <A> You can purchase marker board at big box stores. <S> The illustrated item is 2x4 ft, but it may be available in panels up to 8 ft. <S> You can mount it in a frame and hang it or mount it permanently to the wall using glue. <A> The cheap option is "shower panels" or also called "tileboard". <S> It's typically a 4x8 sheet of hardboard with a white, shiny, laminate coating. <S> Usually less than $20. <S> Typically used as wall panels in a low-cost laundry room or basement bathroom or the like. <S> Cut it to size, stick it to the wall with some liquid nails. <A> It works well in my experience and comes in long rolls. <S> We had a conference room that had this on every wall from floor to ceiling <S> and it was very nice. <S> I don't have experience with any specific brand but a google search turned up this .
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You can buy dry erase wallpaper.
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Can I connect to any neutral wire in the house? I have a Belkin Wemo switch that requires a neutral wire for installation. There is no neutral in the switch box. However, there is a neutral in the electrical outlet box below it, and a path from the switch to the outlet. Can I run a neutral wire from the switch to the neutral in the outlet box and connect it as a shared neutral? I guess this is another way of asking of all neutral wires are basically interconnected eventually (leading back to the main electrical box) and whether any neutral in the house can be used by anything requiring a neutral. <Q> According to 2011 National Electrical Code article 300.3(B), No. <S> For verbiage, see this answer . <S> For one explanation why, see this answer . <S> Another reason not to do it, is because you could end up overloading the grounded (neutral) conductor. <S> Depending on if the two circuits are on the same branch circuit, different branch circuits on the same leg, or different branch circuits on different legs, you'll run into different situations. <S> However, in two out of three of these situations, it is very easy to overload the grounded (neutral) conductor. <S> Examples: <S> Let's examine what happens in a 120/240V single split-phase system, in a few different configurations. <S> The circuit breakers in these examples is a combination circuit breaker, with 15 ampere thermal overcurrent protection and magnetic short-circuit protection. <S> Load on a circuit <S> With a single branch circuit supplying a 15 ampere load, we see that there will be 15 amperes on the grounded (neutral) conductor. <S> This is fine, since the grounded (neutral), and ungrounded (hot) conductors are both sized to carry 15 amperes. <S> Two loads on the same branch circuit <S> In this situation, we'll see 30 amperes on the grounded (neutral). <S> However, since we're also drawing 30 amperes through a single breaker with 15 ampere overcurrent protection, the breaker will open. <S> Two loads on the same leg, but different breakers <S> This is the dangerous situation, since the breakers will not trip. <S> Each circuit will draw 15 amperes on the ungrounded (hot) conductor, but the grounded (neutral) conductor will see 30 amperes. <S> Since the conductor is only rated for 15 amperes, the conductor is in danger of overheating and starting a fire. <S> Two loads on different legs <S> If the two loads are on different legs. <S> You'll find that while each ungrounded (hot) conductor sees 15 amperes, the grounded (neutral) carries 0 amperes. <A> First, if either circuit is protected by a GFCI circuit breaker, it will trip. <S> GFCI breakers detect a difference in current flowing on the hot and neutral wires. <S> Normally, this difference would represent current flowing to ground but in this case, it would be current flowing to the other circuit. <S> The other issue is of load. <S> I suspect that the device you're adding draws minimal current on its own so issue <S> #2 is probably not a practical issue, though GFCI breakers would still be an issue. <S> Never the less, it may not be to code, though I cannot quote code to prove it. <A> It means that in some situations, when you think a wire is safe, it'll actually be hot. <S> Resulting in someone closing a circuit through themselfs, thinking what they just touched was safe.
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As well it may pose a danger using other neutral. Net necessarily, if the neutral is on a different circuit. You are adding load to a neutral wire witch may already be carrying it's full rated load.
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how to repair large, uneven crack in concrete floor I have a really long (about 20') uneven crack in my cement garage floor. Not only is it jagged, but the sides of the crack range from flat to about 1/2" high. I want to level the sides of the crack, seal it, and end up with a flat floor. I'm not sure what the best way to do this is. I'm thinking about either grinding or chiseling down the high side, then applying CrackFix, then applying some sort of topcoat to make it smooth. Anyone have any better ideas? I'm not going to put a floor over it, I just want it to look good again. I picked CrackFix because it looks like it will seal and level at least the crack, but once I break up the high side I still need to level and smooth the whole area. <Q> The proper way to do it would be to break it up and pour again. <S> You might be able to get away with a self leveling compound that you pour over the floor then let it set. <S> I've used these before installing tile on concrete. <S> I can't imagine what it would look like as a finish. <A> It sounds like your ground is settling (hence the high spots). <S> Crack filler will only be a temporary fix. <S> it would be better to chisel away the damaged sections (as opposed to cutting) since the ragged join will bond better and have better crack resistance. <S> Mix some cement/concrete mix and lay into the area. <S> then follow up with a screed mix whereby you use a float to smooth the finish. <S> For this, sprinkle some water over the drying screed and "float" using a screeding float <A> My solution was to grind the high side down with a diamond wheel on an angle grinder until the surface was reasonably level, apply an epoxy filler, and cover the floor with an epoxy chip floor that will cover any further imperfections. <A> When I come up against this issue when laying floating floors I grind down the higher area. <S> I use my 5" angle grinder and a grinder like this: turbo grinding cup for granite <S> You will generate ALOT of concrete dust. <S> I sometimes cut out a half circle in a 5 gal bucket <S> so I can set it over the angle grinder about half way up the handle. <S> In the other side I cut a hole to put my shop vac into. <S> Dust is reduced probably 95% this way. <S> You have to work by feel and stopping to check your work occasionally but for the size of crack <S> you describe 1/2 hour should take care of it. <S> When you have a level surface you can finish it any way you wish.
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the best solution(and cheapest) is to break up the area around the crack and re-lay the slab section.
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How to soundproof a wall between two apartments in a 1950s NYC structure? I'm hoping someone might have a suggestion about the best way to soundproof my bedroom wall that is adjacent to my neighbor's living room. It is an apartment that I own in a coop building in NYC that was built in the 1950s. I am pretty sensitive to noise when I'm trying to get to sleep and my new neighbor seems to keep late hours. I can hear his T.V. and chatter through my wall and it's pretty much driving me nuts. I understand that the noise won't be 100% gone. The walls are actually pretty decent in this building. My head is nearest to that wall when I'm in my bed. I am having a contractor come in to do some renovations to my apartment so I thought this might be a good opportunity to have him do some soundproofing as well. I've read some mixed reviews on this, but in my research, Quietrock and Green Glue seem to come up quite frequently. I was thinking that I would have the contractor put up 5/8" Quietrock over this existing wall with green glue between. The wall isn't terribly large so I don't mind spending $60 ea for about 4 or 5 sheets of Quietrock. I thought using both of these materials over the existing wall (which is painted - not sure if that makes a difference) might be a double whammy against the noise coming from his apartment. Does anyone have any thoughts on this idea or is there something that might work better? I'm open to other solutions, but I don't want to spend crazy money on labor. Anything suggestions on this? <Q> You don't need both quiet rock and green glue, they should be seen as alternatives. <S> Also you're going for higher frequency noise: footfall or low frequency noise would be a different answer. <S> No framing needed. <S> You'll likely still hear that TV without some pretty detailed work to find all the paths. <A> I had occasion to set up a temporary sound booth in a condo bedroom for a non-profit with limited finances. <S> I admired the sound dampening foam but had to reject it as it would have cost thousands of dollars. <S> Instead, we got great results by spending about $60 at a Goodwill store for a dozen heavy comforters and blankets and hanging them from the walls of the room and over a wood frame booth. <S> Especially if you like the look, obtain heavy curtains and hang those on the wall, floor to ceiling. <S> I just found this technique is endorsed by a recording studio enthusiast. <A> if you go with the goodwill comforters, or pour the batting in, the poster meant that you locate the vertical studs in the wall. <S> ayou or pay the insulation guy to make holes at the top of the wall between the studs. <S> i am not sire of the size <S> the persons that pumps in the insulating material would know exactly what size hole . <S> it may be 6 inches. <S> You do not pull the existing walls off. <S> The insulator guy or gal, puts a hose in and fills the space with whatever you agree upon. <S> it settles to th bottom and when it hits the top, put the piece you cut back in, or they mat sat wait 2 weeks and see how far it settled, it mat need a 2nd fill, You can then use the drapes over the comforters,old. <S> moving blanket are cheap, maybe fins some cheap fire retardant material. <S> Make sure you check any used blankets for bed bug infestations, or just put them in a device that will raise the TEmp above 165 i think. <S> That will kill all including the eggs, if all area are penetrated. <S> A car parked in the sun with the blankets spread out in the summer would work, you may ave to do one or two at a time.when that is all done, Ikea has these great sliding panels that attack to the ceiling and reach the floor They are used as room dividers or privacy area, or to cover a wall. <S> The colors and fabrics are really nice looking, and best of all they are cheap~~~ <S> so they will cover anythng up.
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There is a company which makes heavy curtains specifically as an affordable sound isolation measure. But your next problem is likely flanking: sound coming through the floor, heating ducts, over the top plate of the wall, out and back in a window, etc. I'd do this: identify and mark stud locations, have a contractor drill holes and dense pack insulation into the wall (see video ), patch the holes, find your marks then green glue and screw 5/8" drywall and be done with it. The look was decidedly shabby, but it completely removed all but the loudest noises of the neighbors, a heat pump, and most boat traffic (a riverfront condo).
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What tool do I need to cut groove along edge of floorboard Very simple question really - I have a floating wooden floor and a raised stone hearth in front of the fireplace. I want to run some cables along the edge of the hearth and I need to lift the floor trim around the hearth and create a groove to hold the cables. What's the best tool for the job? I think I need some type of handheld router but I'm worried that there is not enough space to cut the groove given the high hearth edge. The trim is about 1 inch wide and the hearth is about 2.5 inches tall. There are old floorboards under the floating floor and I want to run a network & TV cable around the fireplace. <Q> There are two possibilities - create a channel in the trim or create a channel in the floor. <S> For network and TV cables, you probably need at least a gap about 1/2 inch wide and 1/4 to 3/8 deep. <S> The trim looks too shallow to put in that channel. <S> You could cut a channel like that and cover it with the existing or comparable trim. <S> A good alternative might be a multitool <S> These are specialized power saws that can cut in very close quarters. <S> The saw blade (it has several others) is offset, so you can cut downward into the floor right up to the edge of the hearth. <S> They come in various price ranges starting at about $60. <S> I would remove the molding, draw a line about 5/8 out from the hearth all around. <S> Then I would cut downward through the floating floor using the half circle wood blade following along the line. <S> You probably will need to use the straight saw blade at the corners. <S> The wood strip you cut off should be easlily removed if it is not glued down. <S> If it is, a small prybar, cheap screwdriver or chisel should easily pop it out. <S> Lay your cable, replace the trim. <S> You may want to use cable clips to keep the wire in the channel until the trim is in place. <A> Thanks to @bib for the suggestion. <S> Ended up getting this Bosch multitool as it had both the half circle and straight blade. <S> I cut though the floorboards with the tool - it took a little longer than expected but it worked perfectly. <S> Ended up with quite a deep groove and had loads of space for the cables so managed to fit 2 network cables, 2 TV cables and a phone cable. <S> Might also run some speaker cables while I'm at it. <S> Also, there was no problem running the cables around the corners as there was some space under the corner of the hearth. <S> To hold the cables in place, I used some old play doh and it worked perfectly. <A> I'd go with bigger trim, with a groove cut with a router. <S> That trim looks too small, and installing between the floating floor and the hearth is asking for thermal expansion problems.
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A multitool was exactly what was needed. While a router can cut channels, it needs several inches around its cutting bits for the base of the unit, and your cut would be too close to the raised hearth.
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How can I repair the start button on my LG washing machine that is hard to press? The start button on my LG washine machine WD14700RD is very hard to press, and getting worse. I need to lean on it with my whole body weight in order for the program to start. All the other buttons work fine, so I am guessing it's a problem with the contact point behind the start button. Can I try to repair this myself? Should I just remove the top of the washing machine, then try to remove the control panel, and see if I can get behind the plastic start button? <Q> Ok well I managed to take off the control panel. <S> There is a little plastic arm behind the start button that had been worn down on the end and wasn't making contact with the electronic button underneath. <S> To access the control panel on the WD14700RD: <S> Disconnect the unit from power and water <S> Remove the top: take off two screws at the back, push it backwards one inch and lift it off <S> Take out the soap tray and remove two screws on the soap tray compartment. <S> Pull it out a little from the machine, about an inch. <S> Remove the front plate from the control panel <S> : there are 7 screws behind it. <S> Rotate the control panel up or down in order to access the screws behind Now that the front plate of the control panel is loose, identify the arm of the button that has stopped working. <S> Wrap a small amount (2-3 times around) of electrical or plumbers tape on the very end of the plastic arm. <S> Or if there is a nib instead of an arm, a small dab of epoxy resin allowed to harden does the trick. <S> Refit the control panel and test <S> the button now works. <S> Reassemble the control panel, top, and turn on water and power. <S> Test once again. <S> And that's it! <S> All you need is a screwdriver and some tape. <S> Too easy :) <A> Using a hole punch, make 2 layers of electrical tape rounds. <S> Put them on the end of the start button nib with slow dry super glue. <S> Be patient. <S> You are trying to add a few thousandth of an inch. <S> The tape is non-conductive, not brittle, requires no special tools and is a much better fix than wrapping. <S> The push button is not available as a separate part, you must buy the entire control panel, or do this easy fix. <S> The button shown at repair clinic.com is the dryer button, the outer silhouette is the reverse of the start button, the nib is nonexistent, and costs over 30 dollars. <A> I've had great luck with www.repairclinic.com for appliance repair parts. <S> I'm not familiar with your machine but usually replacing the control panel or a button <S> is pretty easy. <S> Having a replacement part on hand is helpful because you can see what the part looks like in isolation to help guide your dissembly. <S> Go for it! <A> I was having the same issue and worried it wad going to be some lengthy & costly repair. <S> I did a simple restart by unplugging my washer for 10 seconds, plugged it back in ten held down the start button for 5 seconds. <S> Boom... <S> It worked! <A> My LG start button was stuck in and would not press to turn on. <S> There was no "give" to the start button when pressed. <S> I used my kids toy arrow with a suction cup on one end. <S> Wet it and placed it over the start button. <S> Pushed in so the suction was activated. <S> When I pulled the arrow off, the button pulled back out to the correct position, no longer stuck in and was able to start the washer when pressed. <S> Cost: Zero <A> As suggested by one commenter, I used a small 18 gauge brad nail in the hollow end of the back of the button, cut to size so it was just slightly over the edge of the tube. <S> It worked; let's see how it holds up. <A> Button was stuck in. <S> I used about half inch of gorilla tape. <S> Stuck it to the surface of the button and gentle pulled and wiggled it. <S> The button popped out and worked again.
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A little bit of tape on the end of the plastic arm did the trick. Remove the control panel: push down on the two arms on top of it so that it can pop out, and pull it out at the top and then lift it off the bottom hooks.
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Can I install used carpet that's been removed from another home? My carpet is about 25 years old now and it's time to go. I know some people rip carpet out of new homes because they're laying down hardwood. Any issues I should be aware of? (I like the idea of recycling instead of buying new) Thanks! <Q> Technically, yes you can, but in reality the results might not be great: <S> Carpet is measured and cut to fit a house's floorplan: individual pieces are cut from a carpet roll to fit around the tricky bits in your house (door openings, inside closets, etc.) and then taped and ironed together on site. <S> Unless you have the exact same floorplan, you're going to have some scrap, meaning it will have to come from a bigger house so that you have enough to fit yours 1 . <S> Removing carpet without damaging it can be tricky. <S> Think about your house's floorplan, and how you'd roll up a single piece of carpet to get it out your front door. <S> Finding the seams between pieces is difficult because the original installers are trained to join separate pieces invisibly. <S> Carpet has a grain, so pieces cut lengthwise from a roll will look funny next to pieces cut crosswise. <S> The carpet gets a different amount of wear and tear in different parts of the house; if you have to join pieces from different rooms in the original house, they may not have worn the same. <S> This may not be an issue if the house you're taking it from is new. <S> Cutting carpet is somewhat demanding. <S> Installing carpet, even with a power kicker, is a job for the young and indestructible. <S> Carpet can pick up surprising amounts of dirt; be sure to have it thoroughly cleaned before installation, especially if the original owners have pets. <S> 1. <S> I helped someone do exactly this several years ago; the carpet and pad came from an approx. <S> 2000 sq.ft. house <S> and he installed it in his 1000 sq.ft. basement. <S> The house it came from was very open-plan, with large living and family rooms and three good sized bedrooms. <S> After cutting pieces down to size to fit his basement rooms (1 large bedroom, 1 small bedroom and a living room), he didn't have a whole lot of carpet left over. <A> In theory I can't see why you shouldn't be able to re-use carpet. <S> Things you might want to check would include: Size and shape of the room (obviously) <S> Why is it being replaced? <S> You mention people going for hardwood floors, but you'd want to make sure that there wasn't another reason like spillage, infestations and the like. <S> How was it removed? <S> How was it stored after removal? <S> If it was just left outside then there might be water damage etc. <S> So as long as you're happy with the quality of the carpet you should be OK. <A> Yes, you certainly can. <S> But with some caveats: Carpet pad is nasty. <S> You don't want to reuse the pad, whatever the motivation. <S> It's healthier to properly dump the used pad and put in fresh stuff. <S> We recently removed all carpets from our main floor and replaced them with laminate floors. <S> The old carpets have a second life as some sort of temporary basement floor covering; we just threw them on there, and will probably cut them into decent-sized pieces sometime.
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If it was just "ripped" up then there might be damage to the edges, or even the middle of the carpet, which might make it unusable. Make sure you steam clean the carpets (or use other industrial-strength cleaning processes), to make sure you aren't just transferring 25years of dust mites, hair and what-not somewhere else. You may want to separate individual pieces from each other at the seams, to make sure they fit OK in the new space.
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Can my rotary hammer act as a hammer drill? The concrete around my window is incredibly hard, too hard for my non-hammer drill. Somebody at Homebase advised me to buy this rotary hammer , which comes with special bits of 6, 8 and 10mm. He said I can use an adaptor for any smaller bits, forgetting to mention that in this case I cannot use the "hammer function" in this machine. Indeed, this rotary hammer has 2 functions: drill and hammer. And I need to drill holes 4mm wide. So I need to use the machine's adaptor, and so I'm limited to the "drill" function. My question is: considering that the "hammer" function is actually the extremely powerful rotary function which is only compatible with the special bits sold with the machine, does the "drill" function is similar to what a normal hammer drill does? That's exactly what another Homebase employee said to me this morning, but I doubt it, because the "drill" function produces the exact same result as with my non-hammer drill. Any second opinion would be welcome. The manual doesn't help at all, the brand doesn't seem to have a website (?). No idea where to ask. <Q> As a remodeling contractor, I've owned both hammer drills and rotary hammers. <S> The rotary hammers are frequently rated for drilling capacity by the diameter hole it can drill. <S> Most homeowner chores can be accomplished by 7/8 to 1" capacity. <S> You can drill larger holes, but at reduced speed. <S> There are 3 classes of SDS drills. <S> The widest range of bits are in the "SDS plus" sizes. <S> SDS max would be overkill. <S> I have and use an SDS-to-1/2 chuck adapter, which is rated for concrete drilling. <S> I use it for the smaller sjzes only. <S> I would recommend getting a 3 function rotary hammer; - Drill only - Hammer only (useful with SDS chisels) and - Hammer + drill (my most used setting) <A> considering that the "hammer" function is actually the extremely powerful rotary function which is only compatible with the special bits sold with the machine, does the "drill" function is similar to what a normal hammer drill does? <S> The homebase page describes the drill as "3 function". <S> The hammer function will stop the rotation of the drill, so you can use it with a chisel, point, or flat bit for breaking. <S> My biggest concern with a 4mm bit will be that the hammer might be too much and actually ruin the bit. <S> The drill will also have a third mode where it just rotates with no hammer. <S> You'd use this for drilling wood or metal. <S> It doesn't matter whether you use the SDS bits supplied or smaller bits in the adaptor for drilling. <S> Both will work the same. <A> You can use your rotary hammer if you don't mind the fact that the hole will not achieve perfection on quality. <S> But you can use bigger drills and not overexploit your tool. <S> If you need perfect holes (like you need at wood, for example) then you must use hammer drill. <S> But with smaller drills!
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For drilling holes into masonary, you need the roation and hammer mode (just like a "normal" hammer drill), along with a suitable bit.
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Should I replace my mercury switch thermostat? We have an old mercury switch thermostat in our house, You know the type, gold ring, very common. We are in new England on a gas/steam system. There is no central AC. We have been told by more than one heating professional that there really aren't any decent alternatives. The problem is that the thermostat doesn't report the right temperature, so it basically functions as a switch. The other problem is that my wife hates it. I think we are on a 2 rather than three wire system. The house was built in the late 1920's. Does anyone have experience with alternative thermostats? <Q> Even the cheapest digital thermostats have schedules, so that they can have different heating points during the morning, daytime, evening and overnight, and range from having weekend vs weekday to 7-day indepedent schedules. <S> This allows you to save money by turning down the temperature while you're not home or sleeping. <S> On the more advanced side of things, there are internet-connected thermostats you can program/control from your PC/phone/etc, and ones that can self-learn based on manual adjustments and motion-sensing. <S> There is a corresponding increase in price, and these typically do require a C-wire <S> so since you only have two wires you'd have to pull a new wire for this. <S> To connect a basic digital thermostat to the 2-wires, the best thing is to follow the instructions that come with the thermostat. <S> Typically you're going to connect the two wires between R (or Rh) and W. <A> I agree with John (?) <S> - simple, reliable, doesn't require batteries or power. <S> Indeed, if you have gas you can have normal heat during power outages. <S> If you are frustrated with the lack of temperature sensitivity, you might try messing with the bi - metallic strip and change its performance characteristics. <A> For 30 years we had an old round mercury thermostat. <S> It worked great. <S> Then we bought a new Trane furnace with a new digital honeywell stat like the one above. <S> The new stat freezes. <S> It's programed and constantly gets stuck on the previous setting and doesn't adjust when it's supposed to unless I press a button, any button, then it wakes up and almost like it says "oh, sorry, I was sleeping" and corrects it's self. <S> Im tempted to reinstall the mercury stat. <S> And this isn't the 1st digital stat I've had problems with. <S> It seems the digital stats I've encountered have a short lifespan, like smart phones. <S> Perhaps they're designed not to last more than 2-3 years. <A> I have a mercury thermostat and I have been told by more than one heating and cooling guy that it's the best. <S> It's simple and doesn't freeze up. <S> Ours isn't the most accurate but it does the job. <A> Mercury thermostats are clearly the best for many reasons not the least of which is they will last forever and never need a battery. <S> They also have fully adjustable heat anticipators which NONE of the digital or Nestthermostats have........ <S> Digital and Nest thermostats have dozens of components to fail and die without battery power. <S> So they simply turn what WAS a reliable furnaceinto a Rube Goldberg machine that breaks down every heating season.
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Almost every thermostat on the market today is a better alternative than a mercury switch-type.
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What is/are the proper method and tools for drilling into masonry? Related to this question , The blinds project has gone pretty smooth up until this point. It seems that some walls have plaster or masonry behind them. Probably not a big deal, but I've snapped a couple of quality drill bits in the process. Thus, I ask: What should I do to fasten the rest of these to the wall? I have seen some suggestions online about using molly anchors, but I'm not sure if that's the right approach, or even which molly anchor is appropriate. <Q> Assuming that you have masonry walls, you need masonry drill bits and masonry anchors, which are somewhat different than the molly anchors you find for use with hanging on plaster. <S> Any masonry anchor style should do - as long as you size it appropriately for the item to be hung. <A> Tools Hammer Drill <S> Though it can be done using a regular drill, given enough time and patience. <S> Masonry Bit <S> You'll also want to put a masonry bit in that hammer drill. <S> A carbide bit is the choice of champions. <S> Method Squeeze, Push, and Wait Put the tip of the bit where you want the hole. <S> Squeeze the trigger on the drill motor. <S> Push against the back of the drill motor, or grab the other handle if the drill has an optional side grip. <S> Wait. <S> Hold that position until you've created a hole the proper depth . <S> Pull Out <S> Similar to the Squeeze, Push, and Wait. <S> Except that you pull the bit out of the hole from time to time, to clear any dust and debris from the hole. <A> You don't have to have a hammer drill to drill masonry. <S> The hammering process helps the bit not get stuck as readily, but they do make masonry bits for regular drills as well. <S> Note the double-flute of this one, compared to the one Tester posted. <S> I think Vermont American might be the only brand to make these (I've not seen any other brand for standard rotary) <S> Still, hammer drills are best for this. <S> I have a really basic hammer drill from Harbor Freight (the cheap non-branded one) and it suffices for the small projects I do here and there. <S> If you don't do this often, Harbor Freight can be your friend for light duty niche tools like that. <S> The main advantage is that most masonry bits are meant for hammer drills, so you can easily find them. <S> The big boxes tend to sell the rotary ones as well, but smaller stores don't. <S> I would highly recommend the Tapcon brand for regular mounting. <S> They have a special screw for masonry that requires no anchors. <S> They also have specific sizes matched to the masonry bits they sell, so there's no guesswork in what size bit you'll need. <S> I've been able to mount a wide variety of things to my brick siding using these and nothing else.
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The job will be much easier with a hammer drill , or a drill with a hammer option.
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What is the best way to clean a dryer vent? I posted this questions 6 months ago.. Why does it take my dryer 3 hours to dry a load of clothes? I checked the cycling thermostat and thermal fuse. They are operational. I have seen different ways professionals clean dryer vent ductwork. Coit services used a portable compressor to blow air into the vent the push out lint. There was a good amount that came out.But I have seen another method where they used a rod with rotating brush that push out lint. I am thinking of hiring someone to do it this way. Is this a better way than what Coit did? My tenant last said the timning of drying has improved form 3 hours down to 2 hours. I'm not sure how long of dryer vent ductwork she had at her previous residence. I can understand if she had a dryer close to an exterior wall with a 1 foot of dryer vent. I may have to ask her that. Everything is relative. If there is a longer run of duct it should take longer to dry no? Any feedback would be appreciated. We really want to take care of this tenant because they are nice people. <Q> I use a dryer vent brush like this one at Wal Mart: <A> I just did this this weekend. <S> Does it have a lot of bends? <S> What's it made of? <S> How long is it? <S> Etc. <S> In our case, we had smooth vent pipe, but they used 2' pieces to span about 14'. <S> So we had all these tiny pieces with joints which, on top of that, they 'sealed' with duct tape. <S> Needless to say, all of these poorly connected joints were creating spots where lint was collecting and eventually clogging. <S> I took it all apart and began using the lint brush as shown in another answer, and it worked OK, but much of the lint was caked on to the point I had to scrape it off with a hard tool (screwdriver). <S> In the end, I went out and purchased a brand new 10' section instead, and then put it all back together with proper metallic tape. <S> Dryer works much better now. <S> I figure with an annual check I should be able to keep it fairly clean. <A> Once every year or two ought to be overkill. <S> I would inspect the dryer's lint filter for holes and the lint frame for defects. <S> Definitely educate the tenant on the importance of the lint filter's proper use, including cleaning before every load. <S> If they are resistant or hard to educate, pay for a professional say once per year. <S> If the vent needs cleaning more often than that, charge it to the tenants: they have control over how much lint is going into the vent. <S> Also, you might want to observe usage of the dryer. <S> If it is filled full, then poor performance is to be expected—I would not be surprised by three hours in that case. <S> There needs to be room for air to flow through the dryer during operation.
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While cleaning out the duct work is a great idea, lint clogging the vent shouldn't be a frequent problem. I imagine the answer really depends on the particulars of your duct work. If a "full" load were split into two loads, I bet both "half" loads can be completed in 1.5 hours total, if not faster.
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In what orientation should this L-bracket be when hanging shelves? I have a few L-brackets for hanging shelves. The brackets are asymmetric, where one L arm is longer than the other, just like a real "L" (similar to this ). Is there a preferred or recommended way for which arm, the longer or the shorter, goes on the wall and which under the shelf? <Q> Put the leg that best matches your shelf width under the shelf. <S> That is why there's different leg sizes. <S> The bracket's critical section is the inner corner, it is equally strong in both directions. <S> That said, usually the critical portion of the entire assembly is the withdrawal of the upper wall screw. <S> Having the long leg against the wall somewhat reduces this force. <S> But if that results in a significant portion of the shelf unsupported, that could weaken the assembly more than the modest gain in withdrawal strength. <S> The best approach is to fully support the shelf and use wall screws that are long enough to provide plenty of withdrawal strength regardless which leg is against the wall. <A> The long leg goes against the wall. <S> You can do it the other way, but it won't be as strong. <A> The length of the actual bracket under the shelf should be three quarters the width of the shelf. <A> It depends on if you want more clearance vertically or horizontally. <S> They're 'supposed' to provide more clearance vertically, otherwise you'll lose more shelf space height on the one below it. <S> Even if there's no shelf below, do it that way <S> so you don't hit your head on it . <S> Shelf brackets shouldn't be sticking out of the wall at all, a full foot below it. <S> (meaning it's the wrong way in your picture). <S> The other way, it's more like just an 8" head-bonker.
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The long part goes against the wall, under the shelf.
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How to diagnose a broken Aprilaire humidifier (Model 600)? I have an Aprilaire Humidifier Model 600 (or maybe 600M) mounted on my furnace. The humidifier is not turning on (i.e. letting water flow over the filter) when the furnace is on. The below images show: The control dial with the faceplate on. The control dial with the faceplace off. The housing that contains the filter. The water solenoid. The control dial has three wire pairs connected to it: One pair goes to the furance to get 24V AC power. I've confirmed this has power when the furnance is on. One pair goes to the solenoid and passes on the 24V AC. I've confirmed when the control knob is moved to "Test" (and the furnace is on) that the solenoid opens and water flows to the filter. So the "water side" of the humidifier works. One pair goes to an ourdoor temperature sensor mounted in the housing of my air conditioner unit. I ohm tested the temp sensor and got nothing. So I replaced the temp sensor with an Aprilaire Model 8052 sensor. I thought for sure that replacing the temp sensor would resolve my problem. But after two days of running with the new sensor (and setting the control knob to "6"), a humidity sensor in my house hasn't really moved from 46%.As mentioned, when I turn the knob to Test I can hear the solenoid open and see water flow. But when the knob is at 6 and the furnace is on, I never hear the solenoid get activated. What other steps can I take to diagnose the problem? I've always ohm tested the temp sensor out at the air conditioner. So I could try testing it at the control panel I suppose. The other possibility is that some electronics in the control panel have gone bad. <Q> It's likely functioning properly. <S> A setting of 6, probably correlates to 40% relative humidity. <S> According to the Owners Manual Your Aprilaire Automatic Humidifier, is a high precision system that will accurately maintain the relative humidity in your home to a maximum of 45% RH and a minimum of 10% RH. <S> If the home is at a higher relative humidity, the unit should not come on. <A> I had the same issue, no water. <S> Ran the troubleshooting test here and found that I also had a bad solenoid, it just wasn't opening to allow the incoming water to run over the metal filter. <S> Try blowing air into it before you buy and install a new solenoid. <S> I also blew out the little orifice's, in both water lines that connect to the solenoid before and after the solenoid. <S> Ran fan and heat function of the furnace and whallah, water is running into the drain again :) <S> I hope this has been helpful! <A> 2 things to check. <S> Is the distribution water tray on the top of the filter level? <S> If the water is not making evenly across the entire water tray, you will not be using all the area of the pad, and output would be low. <S> A follow on would be to watch volume of the water fall into the distribution tray. <S> The water only flows all the way down to the pad from a few holes, you are not using all the area of the humidifier. <S> The click will not let you know if the water valve or pipe is not opening completely or clogged/stuck in some way. <A> I would take off the duct tape where the Aprilaire unit connects to the ductwork. <S> I put tape on that same area in my last house and it caused suction problems with the filter inside the Aprilaire unit. <S> It began leaking and causing efficiency problems. <S> You can tape the joints of the duct work <S> but i wouldn't tape at the Aprilaire unit itself.
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I just removed the solenoid from the line, used my air compressor to gently blow the diaphragm open and close a few times by placing the tip of air hose fitting into both ends of the solenoid.
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What size breaker and wire do I need for central air conditioning? I am getting ready to hang drywall in my basement but before I do that, I need to run wire from the main panel upstairs to the future location of the central AC furnace through the basement ceiling joists. I do not know yet who will be installing my AC but I will probably outsource it. At this point I just need to know what the electrical requirements for AC are so that I can bring the cable and hang the drywall. The house has three bedrooms and two living rooms, 1800 sq ft, two floors. What amperage/AWG am I looking at? The wire distance from the panel to the furnace is only about 20' +/- and then I plan to sit the condenser on the roof (it is a low pitched mod bit roof so I can do this, many of my neighbors with similar homes do) directly above the furnace, two floors above (so another 16-20' total). It also may be worth mentioning that I plan to use this for just AC and not heat -- I have already a radiator system in place and I love radiant heat. <Q> You're probably looking at a 3.5 ton unit, so you'll be in the 30-40A (10-8 AWG) range. <S> It might be worth it to get a few quotes from local HVAC companies, and see what they want to install. <S> The companies may have a preferred breaker and wire size, so they may want to redo any work you do anyway. <S> Don't forget you'll also need high and low pressure tubing, and control wires between the indoor and the outdoor units. <A> You should either sort out what the AC is going to be, so you can get specific power supply and cabling needs sorted out now, or <S> line up your joist holes nicely and follow the excellent suggestion from @longneck to run conduit, leaving the wiring for later. <S> Use flexible conduit, if needed to get it in place. <S> Run at least two - there may well be low voltage control circuits that need to be run separated from the power supply. <A> First the wire size depends on the size and requirements of the unit itself. <S> I have installed several split systems and the larger ones required #6 wire, don't forget you will need a disconnect at the unit and a 120v outlet. <S> I use a combination 240v disconnect and. <S> 120v GFCI outlet that is weather and tamper resistant similar to Eaton dpf222rgf20wtst <S> this is good for up to 60 amps but <S> most split systems don't require a disconnect this large. <S> The large unit was 5 ton <S> and I believe it had a 45 amp max over current device (breaker) <S> I can't remember the exact specs on that unit I may have been able to run 8 wire <S> but it was close <S> so I went larger. <A> Most likely you need 8-3 with ground thnn or thwn with 50 amp disconnect mounted within several feet from unit with a 50 amp circuit breaker in the main distribution panel. <S> This is good for 50 amp rated unit. <S> Use 10 awg for 30 amp unit or 6 awg for 60 amp unit. <S> These rating are adequate for runs of up to appx 60 ft <A> The ac should be installed prior to any finish work from what is being said here. <S> A 240 line is needed for the condenser directly to breaker panel with a disconnect at outside unit.
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Breaker size depends on what is installed and length of wire. It's going to completely depend on the unit that's being installed, but commonly it'll be 30-60 amp with 10-4 AWG wire. Alternatively, leave a section of the drywall open for now, allowing for both cabling and refrigeration tubing to be run before you close it up.
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Can I use bolts to attach a bed to the walls of my room? I plan on mounting my bed to the walls of my room. You can say that it will look like a loft bed without the legs. To make it look like it really is floating, I won't be using angle brackets. Instead, I plan on mounting the frame using multiple relatively long and thick bolts. The bolts will go through the frames instead of under it like with brackets. The house is made of concrete so I'm pretty sure the walls can take the load of the bed, me, and lots more. The wood that will be used will be wood that is normally used for making beds so I'm pretty sure it can handle my weight too. First Problem My problem is if the bolts can withstand all the weight and transfer them to the wall. I will use thick enough and long enough bolts for these. How thick and how long exactly, I'm still not sure. Please look at the diagram below to see what I'm trying to say. If you are wondering why I'm only bolting the bed on the short sides of the frame, that's because the back wall (which one of the long frames is touching) has a window in it (at best, I might be able to put a few more bolts near the corners). The bed frame is made using 1" x 4" pieces of wood. I also plan on making the frame capable of being disassembled. Do you think this is feasible? If so, how long and thick should the bolts be? Is 3/8" thick enough? Is 4 inches long enough (I can get longer bolts if necessary)? What material should the bolt be made of? How many should I use? Second problem My next problem would be is that the walls of my room are not parallel with each other so a rectangular bed won't be touching the walls on both the short sides. See the diagram below to see what I'm saying: As you can see, the left side of the bed isn't fully touching the wall. While I can still attach the frame to the wall, I don't like seeing any space in between. I think the space in between would be an inch or so at its widest. First thing I've thought of doing is to just make the frame adapt to the shape of the room. Can anyone suggest a better solution to this as I would rather have a rectangular bed just so that I won't have an irregularly shaped bed when I move it or convert it to a regular one. Another solution I've thought of is to make a wedge that will fit the space. I'm not sure though if that's an easy task (by the way, I will hire professionals to make the bed). Another is I can just make a small piece of wood to cover the front side of the space. This is easier than making a wedge but I don't think it's pretty to look at from below or over the bed. What do you guys think? <Q> As long as the wood that you use to construct your bed frame is strong enough in its own right to be used as a bed frame you should have no problems supporting the frame from both ends by bolting into the concrete wall. <S> Bolts that are 1/2" in diameter should be plenty strong in shear to support a bed frame mounted in this manner. <S> Three or four equally spaced bolts per end would give you an even distribution of support for the frame at each of the concrete walls. <S> If you can penetrate the walls by two to three inches and install good quality anchors there should be no problems with the bolts staying tight and in place. <S> Using a drop-in internally threaded anchor type should provide you the ability to use standard threaded bolts that can then be removed easily with the anchor staying in place in the wall . <S> If you look at the RM-12 type you'll need 5/8 inch holes in the wall <S> that are a minimum of 2" deep. <S> This type of anchor also includes the need of a setting tool to expand the anchor into the concrete before installing the threaded bolts. <S> The RM-12 offers a 3/4" thread depth. <S> For best application of the bed frame it would be recommended to build it to fit to the shape of the walls so that the end pieces can be solidly bolted up to the wall. <S> If you elect to stay with the rectangular frame and then I would recommend that backer be placed behind the end piece where each bolt is located. <S> If you do go with just backer blocks or the wedge one way to get a nice look would be to add an additional facer trim board as shown below. <S> If the gap out of square across the width of the bed is only 1" <S> you will never notice it once you get a matress and bedding up on the deck. <A> If your walls are Brick, you will have no load problems at all!... <S> IMO, your biggest challenge/consideration is the buckling of the frame. <S> But if you are confident that the bed frame is rigid enough then bolting to the wall will not be a problem. <S> In terms of the bolts. <S> I would recommend the use of Expanding Bolts (specifically M10(10mm) or 7/16) <S> this will require a 12mm hole in the wall. <S> You will need only 4 bolts (two on each short side) but if I were you i would fit one extra on the long side. <S> Your problem with the angled wall is simple, just get a longer bolt and use a spacer to mitigate the angle. <S> (see graphic) <A> With 1" x 4" lumber for the sides, your problem will not be the anchors, but rather splitting of the wood with the grain. <S> But you can get around this by putting bolts low on the 4" side, and backing them with something thicker (so you have 2 or more inches of wood for the bolts to bear on). <S> I'd have the bed built to match the wall, then have triangular baffle so the mattress does not slide. <S> Perhaps you can make a cell phone or reading glasses pocket out of that space. <A> I had a similar bed my Dad made for me after I fell in love with my friends as a pre-teen. <S> He attached only two sides by bolts to the walls, thick walls of redwood as a bed frame, to surround me in bed, the other two sides came out and met flush like crown molding. <S> My bed was in a corner. <S> But the outstanding corner, where much of the weight was balanced resolved with a simple thick metal chain that went up through the ceiling and was anchored balanced up there in the attic. <S> Just a suggestion but to displace the weight <S> , I really did enjoy the floating feel and one line going up disturbed very little. <S> And I felt safe. <S> I then had a couch and a desk with an aquarium on that, making for lots of living in a small space.
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The benefit of this type of anchor is that it will anchor in the wall and as you tighten the bolt, will press the frame securely to the wall (this will mitigate the risk of frame buckle) Obviously a wedge piece, as you surmised, would be the best as a full length backer. The project is 100% feasible as described.
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How can I trace an electrical cable? I'm installing a wall mount over an existing electrical socket - so I want to remove the socket I've read that just capping off the Hot and Neutral wires is not the best approach and that disconnecting from the power source is best. I don't want to disconnect from the breaker panel as many other sockets that I want live are on the same breaker. How do I find where to disconnect the hot and neutral wires to the socket I want to remove? <Q> You can rent or buy a circuit tracer, true. <S> But cheap and easy: turn breakers off one by one until the existing socket goes dead. <S> Now work backwards, finding the nearest also dead socket. <S> Yours likely takes off from that point. <A> It runs about $40 <S> (WARNING: The power in the line must be off to use devices like this) <S> Turn off the breaker for the run you'll be working on. <S> If you don't know or don't have the time to figure out the specific breaker then just shut off all the main breakers. <S> Un-wire the outlet you'll be tracing so you can get to the wires. <S> Hook the red clip from the LAN Tracker to the "hot" wire. <S> (typically black, but not always) and hook the black clip to the ground wire. <S> Now you turn on the base unit which sends out a signal into the wire <S> and then you carry around the detector to find the route the wire takes. <S> (you have to press a tiny button the detector for it to detect; its a battery saving feature) <S> It does work through walls, but just barely. <S> It's much better if you are in the attic and can point at specific wires, but for your purpose its likely to work fine for routing you to the correct spot. <S> You'll sometimes get a false positive because the wire you're tracing runs in parallel with another wire and the signal <S> some how jumps between the lines, but the false positive is always much weaker than the real thing so you get used to spotting them. <S> That said, if this is not an end-of-run outlet you'll wind up having to run a new line between two devices. <S> So for instance if this outlet is in the middle of two other outlets you'll pull the wire out of the wall to the "left" and "right" of the outlet you want to get rid of and then run a wire from one outlet straight to the other. <A> If you don’t mind putting a cover plate over the outlet, you can cap the wires and do that. <S> This is by far the easiest solution. <S> If you don’t want to put a cover plate over it, then you have to disconnect the socket’s wires at its power source, i.e., the outlet/device that is right before it in the circuit. <S> Then you can drywall over (or otherwise hide) <S> the socket’s box. <S> To find its power source: <S> Identify the breaker for the socket you will remove Turn if off Guess <S> which socket or device comes before the socket in the circuit. <S> Usually this is another socket/device on the same circuit that is closer to the breaker box. <S> Then open it and temporarily disconnect and separate the wires. <S> Make sure no one is going to touch the wires while they are exposed. <S> Turn the breaker back on and see if the socket works. <S> If the socket does not work, you found its source. <S> If the socket still works, repeat 2 – 4 until you find its power source <S> But first, do 9 and 10 below. <S> You may want to wait to disconnect the socket’s wires until you run the new wire, if necessary. <S> Turn the breaker back on Determine if any other socket or light no longer works. <S> If so, you will need to run a new wire from the power source where you disconnected the socket’s <S> wires to the first socket/device that does not work. <S> This will normally be difficult to do and may require hiring an electrician. <S> But, if you can snake the wire yourself, go for it.
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Once you find its power source, you can turn the power off and disconnect the socket’s wires there. Maybe you can find a decorative cover plate online. I have and use the Sperry LAN Tracker for this type of thing and it works well.
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How can I insulate my fireplace when it's not in use? I have a wood burning fireplace insert, that is not currently being used. Now that it's cold in my area (27F), I've noticed that there is quite a draft coming from the fireplace. How can I cover/insulate the fireplace to stop the draft? Rules: Must be wife approved (so not too ugly). Must stop the draft. Must be easily removable. Must be safe when fireplace is in use. I've seen solutions where a sewn blanket is hung over the fireplace, using hook and loop tape. I have my fears that the hook and loop tape would not fair so well while a fire is burning, but I'm not sure how hot the face of the fire box gets (since we've not had a fire yet). <Q> Similar to @BMitch's answer, I used a magnetic cover to cover the vent below my fireplace. <S> We found this was the primary cool air leak for our fireplace <S> and I bet it is yours too. <S> It works great, and is very simple to remove before starting a fire. <S> Since it is black like the fireplace, it is not even noticed. <S> I bought one from this site selling the exact size I needed and in black. <S> Here is my fireplace with it on and removed. <A> You may have solved this already but an alternative is a Chimney Balloon . <S> It is easy to install, and you don't see it. <S> If you accidentally leave it in then it will melt and deflate and is not going to go ablaze in the fireplace. <S> You'll need to pick the correct size though, <A> Test the your insert first with a magnet to make sure these covers will stick. <A> That should work, provided the wife approves of the appearance. <S> The face of the fireplace shouldn't get hot enough to burn your hand, otherwise it'd be a safety hazard. <S> The tape should do just fine. <S> Is the chimney damper closed? <A> I have this fireplace cover , but I find that it only helps so much. <S> I am thinking of building a supplemental heat barrier, with the following layers (from closest to furthest from fire): radiant foil barrier fiberglass insulation (no vapor retardants) plywood <S> I would cut the fiberglass to the size of the plywood, then take a slightly larger piece of foil and wrap it around, then tack and tape it in place. <S> I would place this over the fire retardant fireplace cover that I already have. <S> This is ugly, of course, but I think it would keep the cold out.
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If the worst part of the draft is coming from the vents above and below your insert, you can block the draft with some magnetic vent covers:
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How to repair garage ceiling? The attic of my house is unfinished. My son accidentally fell to the filing and caused the garage ceiling broken. Please see the images. Can you advise me how to repair this? <Q> I would: <S> Clean out the hole and all the broken drywall. <S> Use drywall screws and screw 2 or 3 cross pieces of strapping across the back side of the hole. <S> Then you can cut a new piece of drywall and fit it to the hole and you have something to screw it to. <A> Make the hole bigger first using a utility knife or a drywall saw so that the edges are nice and square. <S> And make the whole process easier on yourself by making the hole a rectangle. <S> Screw it in with coarse thread drywall screws. <A> Here is a How-To link that shows a lot of the basics. <S> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQxGpcGGBk0 longneck mentioned all the process, the video will show the same, as well as some tips on taping. <S> Also as mikes mentioned, the garage is typically done in a fire resistant (fire code) <S> sheet rock which usually 5/8" thick, though sometimes 1/2' will be used. <S> Check the thickness of a cut edge at the repair area or scrap that was removed. <S> If you do it yourself, the materials will be under $50 US, probably closer to $30Check out <S> some of the other drywall repair videos on Youtube <S> , there is always more than one way to tackle the same problem.
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If you don't care about having a completely finished appearance then you can just buy a sheet of drywall and cut it to size to fit the hole.
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What underlayment should I use to reduce traffic noise under a hardwood or bamboo floor? I'm in the process of renovating the 2nd story of my New England 1.5 story cape-style home. New OSB subfloors are down with Liquid Nails and deck screws over 5 weeks ago. I'm on to flooring now. I don't have much experience with wood flooring, so I'm not sure what my best option is for reducing traffic noise from upstairs into the rooms below. I'm not too concerned about moisture, except moisture content of OSB. The house has forced hot air heating. Can I use a felt cushion underlayment designed for floating floors in a nail down application of solid hardwood? Does rosin paper act in any way as a noise barrier? <Q> You probably missed "the best option for reducing noise to below" if you put down new subfloors and didn't put insulation under them (assuming you actually removed the old subfloor and had open joists.) <S> If you are already committed to nail-down flooring, I don't think the underlayment will make much difference, as the nails will transmit sound into the structure. <S> An actual floating floor on the thin, dense foam underlayment sold for that purpose would be the best option on top of the subfloor for traffic sound reduction - or a "no shoes on the second floor" house rule. <A> You have the answer in your question. <S> I've used felt cushions in appartments to reduce traffic noise and it makes a huge difference. <S> But beware, if you have a very uneven subfloor you'll get a lot of squeaky noises and no rosin paper or cushions are going to fix the problem. <A> As some one said, insulation great sound proofing. <S> You may have the chance to put in blown in insulation. <S> As for a floating floor, get the best pad you can get. <S> I like my floor. <S> But i did not get the best pad. <S> Wish <S> i got a better grade pad, thicker. <S> Any imperfections over 1/8 you need a filler.
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Your next-best option would be to blow in insulation from below.
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Can I run water lines through the attic? I recently had a Slab leak in my home in Indianapolis,IN. This is the 4th Slab leak since I've owned the home. I decided it was time to reroute all the Water lines. I thought this was best so I wouldn't have to deal with anymore slab issues. We had pex lines run through our attic space to the bathrooms and laundry area. Pex had to be ran under the concrete from the utility closet to the Kitchen. All the lines are tied to a Manifold.After reading some info on this site, I am alarmed that we may have frozen lines in the cold temp.The pex was run about 3 maybe 4 feet above the blown in insulation. The lines were fastened to the rafters. Black insulation was used to wrap the lines. I've been told that this is out of code in Indiana and that the lines need to be rerun inside the home. Just below celing. Then celing would have to be framed and new drywall attached.Help! Anyone that can provide any information about what we should do, would be appreciated. <Q> Also to be a lot more careful when hiring "plumbers. <S> " <S> Otherwise, framing in a pipe chase below the ceiling would work, and might actually be easier in some cases (where crossing rather than running along ceiling joists.) <A> This advice is coming from a Master Electrical Engineer who graduated from Penn State in 2012, so take the advice with a grain of salt. <S> First off, these days water lines going through Attic are standard practice especially if you have a slab concrete foundation. <S> The makes the price affordable and allows for minimum tear down during the plumbing repair. <S> While this will may make you work a little more to properly insulate the water lines, it will save you tons of money upfront. <S> Installation technique for PEX lines in the Attic varies according to geographic location. <S> For example, Montana that has those average winter cold nights of -7°C (Wikipedia) will need some extra insulation on PEX lines to account for those windy nights where the chill factor and any non-desired holes allowing airflow to drop the temperature in the Attic further. <S> Remember that Attic temperatures need ventilation holes be it gable grill, soffit ports, turbines, or any Attic fan in order to match Attic temperature to outside temperature and also to control humidity and condensation in the Attic. <S> Having analyzed that Attic temperatures should be 10 to 15 degrees warmer with adequate ventilation, it is my opinion that sufficient insulation around PEX tubing should keep the lines from freezing. <S> Do use the sticky tape to create a hermetic enclosure for the new PEX water lines. <S> If they freeze for any reason, check your Attic ventilation and seal ventilation holes during the winter to warm the Attic. <S> You can also consider using an Attic heater if one exists in order to keep the temperature just above 0°C. <A> I had to replumb my house to get rid of the crappy poly-B piping that has been vexing me with leaks for the past two decades. <S> Rather than rip out my interior to put new PEX pipes in, I ran two 3/4 inch PEX risers up inside my chimney chase from the basement all the way to the attic. <S> From there, I located the top wall plates and dropped half-inch lines off the 3/4 down into the walls for the bathrooms. <S> I made small cuts in the back of the vanity cabinets and brought the new pipes into view. <S> For bathtubs, I was able to cut small access holes in closet walls opposite the tubs. <S> I fit nice little flush-mount panels back in to fill the holes. <S> My attic had 12 inches of blown rockwool insulation. <S> I dug little trenches down to the ceiling drywall <S> so I could lay the pipes right in the drywall. <S> I made little U-channel box covers out of styrofoam to cover the pipes, and then filled the rockwool on top. <S> This created a little cavity where heat from the house can dissipate (through the drywall) <S> so the pipes stay essentially at house temperature. <S> Also, for added insurance, I laid a heat-tracer tape (made for that purpose) alongside the pipes. <S> It is thermostatically controlled and will come on as the temp drops below 40F. <S> Given the location of the pipes (right on the drywall) <S> and the insulating method I used, I doubt the tape will ever come on. <S> I also put a remote reading thermometer up there at a point right on the pipes so I can monitor the temperature at that point remotely. <S> Knowing <S> I'd have to do this plumbing retrofit <S> , I put the thermometer up there last fall, and it remained within a degree of room temperature all winter, even in February when it exceeded -30 for some time. <S> The heat-tracer tape is 80 feet long, cost $120, and gives off about 3 watts per foot. <S> It just gets pleasantly warm, but not hot. <A> I don't see where running your line under the ceiling insulation <S> yes you should try to keep the fitting in the walls but also heat rises and <S> if you insulate the lines i really don't see it freezes. <S> Also if you feel its going the be real cold at times you can alway let the water run at trickle to stop from freezing.
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The simple solution is to dig up the insulation, run the pipes along the top of the ceiling drywall (ie, just above the ceiling, rather than just below it), and put the insulation back on top of them, which puts them on the warm side of the insulation, "inside the home (thermally speaking)." If done carefully, you can avoid any potential for freezing, but proper location and insulation is the key.
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Can mortise and tenon joints be strong without glue? I'm designing a loft bed (here's a rough picture without the cross supports and other details). Right now, most joints will be mortise and tenon. I'd like to be able to take the loft down to parts, and the simplest thing to do would be to disassemble it at the M&T joints. But that would mean they couldn't be glued, and my current understanding of M&T joints is that their strength comes in large part from the glue. Am I missing something? Is there a way to build M&T joints that aren't glued but are still full strength? Edit 2013-11-16: I'd like to make these blind tenons. That makes @Jack's sliding dovetails really interesting. Since the joist structure will be visible from the underside, the aprons and hangar bolts for the corner are also interesting -- I wonder if there could be something like that to secure the non-corner joists... Edit 2013-11-16: After watching a video about making dovetail joints, I'm going to go with @Jack's answer because they depict the answer to the problem. @HerrBag's comments (specifically stopping the dovetails) are, however, what make it a usable answer. <Q> You could use one of the many variations of the mortise and tenon joint, depending on the look you're going for. <S> Though I agree with HerrBag, that the strength of a mortise and tenon joint should not rely on glue. <S> Tusk Tenon <S> This is a through tenon variation, where a wedge is used to lock the joint together. <S> Fox tail (Wedged) <S> Tenon <S> This is another through variation, though the tenon ends up flush on the outside of the joint. <S> In this joint slots are cut into the tenon. <S> and wedges are driven into the slots after assembly. <S> This causes the tenon to expand, and tighten in the mortise. <S> Usually the mortise will be slightly tapered, to allow additional expansion and to create a stronger joint. <A> If they fit tightly and are oriented properly to carry load through the post (like a stud) and the tenon stabilizes lateral loads, it only need to be secured with a peg or screw. <S> Tester101's tusks would be good for the slats. <S> I was envisioning table type aprons for the corners.. <S> This photo shows mortises, corner block (using a hanger bolt) and pocket screws for a solid yet disassemblable joint: <A> It might be good to consider a sliding dovetail. <S> Edit 11/16/13 <S> To assemble your bed frame, the M&T joints with captured bolts with nuts to hold the corners together with the legs. <S> Just as a mention, a good hardwood needs to be used for the assembly. <S> regular 2X4, 2X6s and other similar materials used in the construction of homes will be too soft, and when the joints are put under stress SPF, Hem fir, etc is going to compress and loosen the joints. <S> To use this material you need glue and screws to hold all this together. <S> That is not an option for you I think? <S> To assemble this, white oak, ash, Black walnut and a dense variety of mahogany would be a good choice, if it is not cost prohibitive. <S> There are other hardwoods too, just give a look. <S> Red oak and Douglas Fir are hardwoods, but very prone to readily split under the stresses you are going to expose the joints to. <S> Another good thing about some hardwoods, is that you will not need the same dimension of material to have the same strength as 2X framing lumber. <S> The sliding dovetails are ideal for the cross members into the side rails. <S> To dissemble this in time, and to ease the assembly, which sliding dovetails can be a bear to slide together, I suggest tapering the dovetail so as it goes in, the joint gets tighter, it doesn't need much, <S> a 1/16th of an inch over 4 inches on each side would dramatically increase the ease of assembly/disassembly. <S> A router jig with a bushing guide on the router would make the female cuts in the rails, and a router table with a tall fence and a shim on the appropriate corner of the support for the slats would cut the male dovetail. <S> A push bock would be handy to control the top heavy stock for this cut. <A> One really strong option to consider is drawboring . <S> These use a slightly offset hole to pull the joint tight. <S> The trunnel (peg) should ideally be dry, straight-grained wood, but usually a home-center oak dowel will suffice. <S> I found them to be reasonably easy as a beginner, and they even compensate for a loose joint if you don't quite get the fit exactly right. <S> Google "drawbore joint" for all the details you could ever want.
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Mortise and tenon joints do not need glue to be strong. To use the same joint for the attachment of the legs would produce a weak joint in my opinion, I have seen it fail in pedestal table legs.
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How do I cut drywall on the ceiling accurately? I want to cut the drywall on the ceiling accurately. The thing is that the drywall is thick and it is on the top. I have to stand on the ladder; one hand use utility knife and the other hand hold the drywall. The expected shape is supposed to be rectangle. Cut drywall on the ground is easy, but it is on the garage ceiling(below unfinished attic). It is tough, any tips? <Q> Utility Knife Position <S> a 2'- 4' level (or other straight edge) along the line <S> you'd like to cut. <S> With the straight edge in place, gently draw the utility knife along the line. <S> You don't have to press too hard, just enough to cut through the paper on the face of the drywall. <S> Draw the utility knife repeatedly through the groove you scored in the previous step. <S> Increase the pressure slightly with each pass. <S> Continue until the knife has cut through the drywall. <S> Once you score a line in the drywall, the utility knife will tend to follow the groove. <S> So you'll only need to hold the straight edge in place for the first scoring pass. <S> Drywall Saw <S> You should be able to pick up a drywall saw at any hardware or home improvement store, for just a couple bucks. <S> They also have coarse teeth, which make cutting the drywall easy. <S> They are often known as "jab saws", because you use them by jabbing them through the drywall to start your cut. <S> Place the tip of the blade where you want to begin your cut. <S> Smack the hilt of the saw hard, to force the tip through the drywall. <S> Carefully make your cut using a back and forth sawing motion. <S> Power Tools <S> You could also use a rotary saw , or <S> oscillating Multi-tool <S> to quickly and easily cut drywall. <S> WARNING: <S> Always be aware of what is behind the drywall, to avoid cutting into wiring, plumbing, or other hidden dangers. <A> Free Hand Utility Knife Technique <S> I personally have good luck with a utility knife freehanded. <S> I use a straight edge to mark a straight line, often with a pencil instead of a utility knife. <S> If you do use a utility knife with the straight edge, ensure you are keeping the knife vertical and don't apply too much pressure. <S> Too often the blade will carve out the drywall under the straight edge, or pressure against it will push the straight edge off of it's mark. <S> The trick to straight freehanded lines is to use your body rather that your wrist. <S> If you try to correct your line by shifting your wrist, the line will be all over the place. <S> If instead you push the knife with your shoulder and elbow, keeping your wrist locked in one position, your lines will be much straighter. <S> Drywall Bit on a Rotary Tool <S> Probably the easiest method to cut drywall is with a rotary tool. <S> Have someone hold a straight edge, or practice cutting straight lines freehanded since this tool will tend to push to the side. <S> The advantages of these tools are speed, ease of use, and they can be adjusted to not go too deep <S> so you don't run the risk of hitting utility lines behind the drywall. <S> This is not a recommendation for a specific vendor, sample images only. <A> Measure carefully and cut it on the ground? <S> You seem to be involved in putting it up ("use one hand to hold the drywall") so that would appear to be a valid approach (as opposed to when you are trying to cut installed drywall). <S> With a bit of care, results can be quite decent, and it involves less annoying messy work over your head. <S> If you are doing much ceiling installation, renting (or buying, depending how much - if bought used and sold after the work is done, it can cost you less than rental) a drywall lift/hoist simplifies ceiling installation, especially if you don't have a helper. <A> How about a straight-edge which has mounting holes drilled through it? <S> Screw the straight edge to the drywall (not too tightly) and then both your hands are free to do the cut, using the edge as a guide. <S> Then unscrew the edge. <S> The holes disappear when tape and mud is applied.
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These saws have a sharp pointy tip, which makes plunging through the drywall easy. With a helper, a T-support fabricated from lumber is often adequate and a lot cheaper.
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How do I secure a copper pipe going through a wall? What kind of clamp would be appropriate for securing a 1/2" copper pipe that's run through a wall to the outside to a hose bib? I'll accept a general answer. In my particular case it's a stucco wall out there. I want something strong so it does not stress the caulking that protects the wall. Freezing is not an issue in this area. Here's the outside view: Click for full size image <Q> The fussiest, hardest to find and most expensive aproach would be to find copper or copper-plated L-brackets ("pipe strap" would be easier to find but less rigid.) <S> The practical, less expensive and just as functional approach is to use steel L-brackets and place some durable plastic or rubber material between them and the copper pipe to prevent corrosion. <S> Clamping steel directly to copper will result in galvanic corrosion and an eventual leak. <S> You can also use stand-off clamps intended for wall mounting on the vertical portion of the pipe. <S> The "long-gone plumber" certainly does not appear to have worked to normal plumbing standards... <A> The best is to use a hose bib that has a flange or collar that can be secured into the wall. <S> This way stresses on the bib due to pulling and tugging on an attached hose do not directly transmit into the copper pipe. <S> Several examples are shown below. <S> Successful mounting of this type of faucet may require pre-mounting the bib to the pipe that goes through the wall and then attaching the pipe to the water supply on the other side of the wall. <S> If anchored in a secure way there should be no real need to separately clamp the pipe going through the wall. <A> I would use a copper riser clamp (pictured below) right on the inside wall. <S> You can then secure this to the wood with two 2" screws and washers placed on either side of the pipe, and between the halves of the riser clamp. <S> This will prevent movement on the x, y, and z axes, although torsional rotation resistance is dependent on the clamping force asserted by the clamp (which can be more than sufficient with this type of clamp). <A> For your particular case, you want firstly to secure the pipe from sliding in and out of the wall opening, and secondly to secure it side to side. <S> If you can cut a block of wood so that it tucks into the top bend and screw that to interior wood, you can then use two clamps -- one on the interior side, one on the right, to hold the copper. <S> Here's an example: I can't judge exactly from the picture, but a chunk of 2x4 and a couple of these clamps would likely get you covered. <S> Some expanding foam can also help hold the pipe in place within the gap. <S> And finally, make sure to caulk around the outside to keep water out. <A> Search online for "hose bibb anchor" (or hose faucet anchor) and the results should contain a 2-part bracket which is made for this purpose. <S> It can be clamped onto the horizontal part of the pipe which protrudes from the wall, and can then be anchored to the wall.
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Use a stainless steel hose clamp (sometimes called a worm clamp becasue of the screw it uses) and a couple of L-brackets - clamp the L-brackets to the pipe using the hose clamp, screw them into the wall with wood screws.
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I have flies after painters came I had painters here about 6 weeks ago. After closing all windows, etc. I had to kill numerous flies - 50? I am still seeing flies, though not nearly as many in my house. I don't know how they are coming in. I asked the painter to come back and he cannot find that they left an opening in the wood they replaced on the house. Any ideas? <Q> I'm a cabinetmaker. <S> One year I sprayed outside some awesome cabinets I'd made for a customer. <S> I had fruit trees on my property. <S> Within seconds I had thousands of fruit flies descending on the wet paint. <S> The reason? <S> The paint, particularly when sprayed and "atomized" is sweet smelling and the fruit flies go for it. <S> I've had it happen again at another location. <S> Different paint, but also sweet smelling. <S> The solution: You'll have to screen off the area. <S> Any open doors or windows <S> and they'll find a way in..... <A> I have had this problem for about 5 years in a row.every year in the spring,house flies would just appear in large numbers. <S> Kill them,they would re appear. <S> Wave after wave. <S> And oddly,if you have this problem,and wait patiently in the right room of your house where they are coming from,you would just see them fly upward to the ceiling and fly around. <S> That would be the way to tell if your having the same problem i've been. <S> Glad to say I have finally found out what I know is causing this problem. <S> Everyone, TAKE OFF <S> YOUR SHOES <S> OR CLEAN <S> YOUR SHOES, <S> WELL BEFORE ENTERING YOUR HOUSE.YOU'RE ALL BRINGING THIS LARVA IN THE HOUSE <S> YOURSELF.Every year when this would happen I would find a maggot on the floor in the kitchen.kill <S> it,about a week later all the flies would come and visit. <S> Early spring I found the usual maggot on the floor. <S> Investigating further I found my sons sneakers,which had been there on the mat a few days with maggots actually stuck in the tread of it squirming to get loose in my kitchen. <S> Evidently, this larva must be really small with hundreds maybe thousands of eggs. <S> And I'd bet as you walk in from your door your leaving an egg trail on floor and even rugs .A <S> week later,the flies came. <S> Killed them all,we have been very conscious of our foot ware and even cleaning the bottoms of our bare feet before entering the house. <S> Esspecially the garden. <S> Next season we will have a shoe brush at each entrance. <S> I know this will end the fly dilemma. <S> Good luck. <A> Something about fresh paint attracts flies. <S> After five years of being in our home, we just had the exterior painted and oddly flies would just gather and land on the paint shortly after it dried. <S> I would almost swear there was honey in that paint, but something is in it that they seem to like. <S> There isn't anything particular inside to attract them... <S> no larvae, waste products, shoe debris, etc.
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Flies are only coming in because they're coming for the fresh paint, then flying through open doors / windows.
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How to apply wallpaper over styrofoam? I live in an attic, and the head part of my bed is in a corner where the roof slope, an outer wall and the wall to the neighbour's unheated attic meet. After a few winters of waking up to the feeling of the roof slope sucking the warmth out of me, I got a pack of polystyrol inner wall insulation. Unlike traditional styrofoam, it is a homogenous foam on the inside, similar to polyurethane foam. On the outside, it has a matte finish with a very fine paint-like structure. I nailed the plates to the wall, right over the existing structured wallpaper. Then I filled the seams and the nail heads with acrylic caulk. Now I'd like to give it a finished look. I feel adventurous enough to try a wallpaper. I have never applied wallpaper before, but it seems that the new cellulose-fleece-backed type is very easy to work with. The problem is that the Internet tells me that regular wallpaper glue won't stick to regular styrofoam. I didn't find information specific to the glue for cellulose-backed wallpaper, or about this finished styrofoam. I also found the information that wallpaper can be applied to styrofoam in the following order: a layer of styrofoam glue, left to dry out a layer of underwallpaper soaked in normal wallpaper glue a layer of standard wallpaper, applied in the standard soak-in-glue method This information came from the site of Henkel, manufacturers of styrofoam glue which costs 7 Euros per kg, an amount which only suffices for 1-2 square meters of wall. Before I pay for glue two times as expensive as the styrofoam below it and three times as expensive as the wallpaper above it, I'd like to know: Is a base layer of styrofoam glue the only way to get wallpaper to hold to the styrofoam? Do I really need an underpaper layer if I am using a cellulose-fleece wallpaper as opposed to a standard one? Does it help hold the real wallpaper to the styrofoam, or is it just to give a nicer look? All articles I read agree that it is possible to paint over styrofoam using regular water-based inner wall paint. Could I paint over the styrofoam and apply wallpaper to the paint? It would cost three times less than the styrofoam glue. This is what the caulked styrofoam looks like right now: <Q> You should not do this. <S> Foam insulation (EPS, XPS, etc.) needs to be covered with drywall in order to protect it (extend the amount of time before it melts) from fire. <S> Otherwise you are risk of being exposed to toxic fumes and melting foam <S> should you ever have a fire. <S> Imagine molten foam dripping from your ceiling onto you - not a situation you want to find yourself in. <A> do you have drywall over in Germany? <S> i would do a little framing (probably with metal studs, that's used in Europe), insulation inside, then drywall over and wallpaper over drywall. <A> Cellulose wallpaper glue works fine <S> I've just finished (two months ago) gluing polystyrene insulating tiles to my bedroom walls with normal wallpaper glue i.e. cellulose. <S> Then I stuck on a layer of wallpaper with cellulose wallpaper glue and it has all worked perfectly. <S> So I do not think you need to use any special glues. <S> If you 'size' (prepare) <S> the tiles first by painting on a very thin, watery layer of wallpaper cellulose glue and let it dry <S> , you get excellent adhesion with ordinary wallpaper adhesive. <S> I am a perfectionist, and I can tell you that the end result looks excellent! <A> Going back to the original question, it is true that the glue that is activated on the back of pre-pasted wallpaper is probably not enough to make it stick to the wall. <S> Most pre-pasted wallpapers come with instructions advising to SIZE the walls before wetting the wallpaper strip and THEN use a brush to add wallpaper glue (I can't remember if that is what it's called... <S> quart size bucket of stuff that is thicker than the sizing but not as thick or sticky as Elmer's glue). <S> I realize now that this was from a year ago, but <S> oh, well.
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The correct "solution" is to drywall on top of the foam (using furring strips, or long screws into the studs), mud/tape the drywall, prime, and then apply wall paper using standard wall paper adhesives.
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Why would my Goodman gas furnace start but not stay on for more than 2-3 minutes? I've got a problem with my 15 year old Goodman furnace. It starts w/o problem, inductor begins working, hot surface ignitor lights up and ignites the gas. Then the main blower starts working and the whole thing stays on for 2-3 minutes. Then the flames go off before the thermostat reaches the target temperature. Though it continues to recycle the air. It will restart 20-30 min later with the same effect. Sometimes the flames don't appear at all (I guess gas valve stays off) even though everything else stays on (including HSI). I checked the termocouple. It looks clean but may be I still should replace it? Could it be a faulty air pressure switch? <Q> I have seen them where they look clean but are dirty enough that the DC voltage being generated is not enough for the circuit board to keep the gas valve open. <S> I would pull it out and clean it with some scotch brite or a brillow pad. <S> be care full not to damage the porcelain base. <S> It is generally fairly easy to remove, one or maybe two 1/4 screws holding it in place. <S> Gently pull it out and clean it with the pad like you would if you where sanding a wooden dowel. <S> The 2nd thing it might be (less likely) could be a roll out switch. <S> If your air filter is dirty it would prevent enough air flow across the heat exchanger to keep it from over heating causing the roll out safety switch to open. <S> If this is neglected for a long period of time it can cause the ROS to weaken and begin to trip at lower than designed temperature. <S> ps. <S> there are typically LED lights on a the circuit board that will blink error codes to help in diagnostics. <S> It is best to capture that info and will usually point you in the right direction. <A> Sounds like either a bad over-temp switch, or cause for an over-temp. <S> Replace the plenums over temp sensor, or remove obstructions from the air system (dirty coil or filter, closed registers, half detached and now hanging duct insulation.) <S> If all else fails cut the gas back some by slightly closing the gas valve, however be prepared to have to reset the furnace if your local gas pressure drops intermittently. <S> My step one on Goodmans is as mentioned, clean the flame sensor, but I think they only run for a few seconds if that's the case. <S> "Sometimes there's no flame at all" sounds like a bad pressure switch on the exhaust blower. <S> Until that switch is satisfied the gas valve won't open. <S> But you must be sure it's not still in a lock-out. <S> This applies to only when you do a cold start (flip the switch that should be there, or the breaker). <A> I had the same problem. <S> The blower would run, then the unit would fire up briefly, then quit after a few seconds. <S> I cleaned the flame sensor and solved the problem. <A> Your primary limit is on lockout. <S> You have to change it out. <A> bypass pressure switch and see if it doesn't fix the problem. <S> make sure you are not jumping the wires to the pressure switch until after the draft inducer motor has started. <S> 18 years experience spent several hours Gran 3 minutes shut down. <S> pressure switch diaphragm was bleeding off and opening
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There are a couple of things that it might be:It could be the flame sensor. The problem is either a dirty filter that hasn't been changed in a couple years, or you have to clean off A - coil Finns to get better air flow due to running a system without a filter for a long period of time.
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How can I run wiring around an inside corner? I am working in a garage and need to run electrical wire through a corner. I cannot go over the corner through the ceiling (a long story), and going through the studs at a right angle will be a significant challenge. Since this is a garage, I'm ok if the wire comes out of the sheet rock. Can I just have the wire come out through the sheetrock, in a conduit, go around the corner, and then have it go back into the second wall? Or must the wire go to a box on the first wall, come out of the box in a conduit, then go into a box on the second wall and then continue on? Thanks for the repliess - I think the trunking is the way to go. I just don't know if I need to have an electrical box on each wall at the exit and entry points (?) or can I just come in and out directly, assuming the wire is within the trunk while outside the wall?... http://www.homedepot.com/p/Southwire-6-ft-3-4-in-Liquaflex-NM-Whip-Kit-58004609/203424766 <Q> If you are having issues with drilling the corner, realize that you can make the job significantly more possible with an ordinary drill if you don't try to hold it level - shift the wire up or down a few inches as well as taking it around the corner, and the hole becomes much easier to drill. <S> As for your question about the approach using conduit, that's going to depend on the LAHJ (local authority having jurisdiction) <S> a.k.a. " <S> the building inspector", if you are subject to inspection. <S> Generally better to ask them first, than to try and convince them that the internet said X would be OK...what is acceptable in one local area may not be in another, and in some cases what's acceptable in the same area will vary with inspector (probably shouldn't, but often does, even so.) <A> Just use same trunking if it is somewhere is will not get damaged, otherwise use metal conduit. <S> There is no need to run a cable in a wall apart from trying to hide it, provided you give the cable enough protection. <A> Removing and re-installing baseboard in a garage would be quick and easy because you don't have to be too fussy about it. <S> At the corner I would make a notch, lay in the cable, and use a nail-plate (example below) to protect the wire. <A> If you run BX cable instead of ROMEX <S> it won't matter if it's inside or outside of the wall. <S> If you run the entire length outside the wallm, the time you will save on installation generally offsets the cost of the cable.
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Have you considered running the wire down to the baseboard, temporarily removing it, then running the wire just above the sole plate, around the corner, and to up to your destination.
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What's going on with this lightswitch (two wires to bottom connect, not connected on top) My parents inherited a house and I'm just kind of cleaning it up. It's old -- Edison fuses and other things that I have to puzzle over. Replacing a damaged beige four-outlet thing in a bathroom, one of the switches is weird. Beyond the already seemingly unreasonable gauge of wire being used (that can barely fit in the screws without popping out) , the switch for the fan has two wires connected to the bottom. And the other wire goes into a hole at the top instead of the screw: What... is this about? The nice new white switches to match the new ceramic faceplate do not have the hole at the top; just the screws. <Q> The electrical "loop" from switch to switch is actually common when the black wire (on a white neutral wiring setup) is used to power several switches in a box (lights, fan). <S> It prevents connecting each one separately via a marette (pressure wire connector). <S> Some will argue that it's a better way to connect them since there is no risk that any wire is badly seated in the marrete. <S> It's also much easier to replace switches individually this way. <A> The hole is simply a different way of connecting the wire. <S> There is a spring-loaded contact inside that also works like a ratchet by making it harder to pull the wire out than stick it in. <S> This is all intended to minimize the time it takes to install the switch. <S> Also, the wire size doesn't look absurd at all. <S> That's probably 16 guage, maybe 14, which is totally appropriate for stuff like simple lighting fixtures or a bathroom fan. <S> Of course the fuse this is on must be rated for the minimum wire size used anywhere on that circuit. <A> Switches are mechanisms to break (disconnect) or make (connect) the power line to the fixture. <S> On a given circuit, all hot power lines are effectively connected. <S> Assuming standard connections, the lower wire is the power source, and the upper is the wire to the fixture. <S> The loop connection allows the power wire to power the switch and its fixture, and also to forward the power to the next device, which could be a switch and fixture or an outlet. <S> There are alternative connection approaches, such as a pigtail (a short wire connecting the switch), the hot source line and the line to the next fixture, all connected by a wire nut. <S> However a looped connection such as you have is also common. <S> It is important that no more than one wire be placed under a screw connection. <S> A loop is considered one wire. <A> unreasonable gauge of wire being used (that can barely fit in the screws without popping out), <S> The wire size looks normal, probably 14 gauge, maybe 12. <S> That's what is used for lights. <S> the switch for the fan has two wires connected to the bottom. <S> But why the two connections? <S> Does that actually accomplish anything to tie to (presumably) ground? <S> If you know it's ground, why not just tie ground? <S> Stripping a wire like <S> this saves time and is the best method to use when one wire is serving two destinations. <S> The black wires are hot wires, not grounds. <S> Most switches don't even have a ground terminal. <S> And the other wire goes into a hole at the top instead of the screw. <S> What... is this about? <S> The nice new white switches to match the new ceramic faceplate do not have the hole at the top; just the screws. <S> You can connect to either one. <S> The new switch is just made differently, i.e., without the hole. <S> You have to cut the wire to get it out, as far as I can tell. <S> You can remove the wire from the back of the switch by looking for the tiny slot near the wire's hole, inserting a flat-head screwdriver into it, and pressing down.
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The hole in the top of the switch is an alternative to the screw at the top. I realized that it's a single wire, stripped in the middle as a loop. Some have these, some don't. I don't see anything out of the ordinary here. Standard wire size for most US circuits is either 14 gauge or 12 gauge (heavier).
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How do I seal around an outdoor rated wall mounted luminary? What's the proper way to seal a exterior wall mounted luminary from water entry? I was unable to find one for purchase with any sort of gasket, and it appears that any water sheeting down the wall will simply pass through the fixture: The pictured fixture reads "suitable for wet locations" on UL sticker, and is from a respected brand. There's a weep hole at the marked bottom. I checked every wall mount fixture at several home and building supply stores and they all had the same basic design. Caulk is an option of course, but caulk must be maintained over time. A retrofit 'mounting block' might help, but those need caulk also. Are there better options for keeping the inside of the light reasonably dry? <Q> What's the proper way to seal a exterior wall mounted luminary from water entry? <S> Caulk it with a high-quality, paintable silicone caulk like this. <S> I have been using this caulk for 8 - 10 years and have never had to re-caulk after applying it. <A> What's the proper way to seal a exterior surface mounted lamp from water entry? <S> Here's what I ended up doing. <S> This in essence built up a nearly invisible gasket. <S> The fixture already had a weep hole. <S> Fastening the fixture compressed the gasket and made a seal that won't tear with future motion: I then ensured <S> all three wire nuts were pointed with the open end down, so condensation does not build up and rust the spring wires. <A> Old post <S> I know... <S> I just wanted to share a product I found: <S> Sigma Electric 14002 <S> http://www.amazon.com/Sigma-Electric-14002-Round-Gasket/dp/B00C3YDIZA
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I applied a bead of paintable silicone caulk directly to the stucco, tooled it for good adhesion, and smoothed it with a soapy finger.
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What glue to bond metal and plastic in cold weather? I have a small plastic torch (flashlight) with a magnet on the back. I use it to provide light in a small metal trailer. Recently I pulled the torch off the metal wall, and the magnet came away from the torch. I've fixed this problem before, but the glue I used seems to fail in cold weather. (I'm in the UK, so by "cold", probably I mean 3°C down to -5°C.) Can someone recommend some suitable glue? <Q> Some sort of 2 part epoxy should hold up pretty well. <S> Araldite is a common brand in the UK. <S> For best results, try to remove the old glue so the bond is to the plastic itself, scuff both surfaces with sandpaper, then clean with something like alcohol to ensure the best bond. <S> Allow to dry before applying epoxy. <S> It's important to use the specified proportions of resin and hardener (usually 50:50) and that the two are well mixed. <S> The epoxy should cure at room temperature or as specified, but once fully cured it will hold up under fairly extreme temperatures. <S> It is also waterproof and resistant to most chemicals. <S> Be sure it is only applied to surfaces intended or materials disposable. <S> It usually is impossible to remove once cured except by grinding away. <S> The two part versions are stronger but the more common one part formulas work quite well too and are more convenient to use. <S> Such adhesives can be found in sizes anywhere from small craft quantities up to large tubes of construction adhesive by the case. <S> Note that not all construction adhesives are polyurethane based. <A> You can use a soldering iron with a small pointed tip to heat the perimeter of the recessed area the magnet sets in. <S> After it heats up, put the magnet in place, and the tip of the iron about 1/4" away. <S> Then push the iron down and towards the magnet until the plastic melts and some of it overlaps the magnet, or, wedges it in place. <S> Do this 3 or four times around the perimeter. <S> Melting plastic like this is something I've done successfully a number of times for repairs. <S> It creates a stronger bond than any plastic glue I've tried. <S> A simpler method would be to just cut a piece of duct tape to fit the bottom of the torch then press it down over the magnet. <S> This assumes that it will stick to this type of plastic. <S> You can test first by seeing if the tape sticks adequately to the plastic. <A> I have a similar torch/Flashlight and have had the exact same problem.. <S> I fixed mine with a product called Q-Bond . <S> On my flashlight, the magnet was flush (ie not resessed) <S> and I was able to build up a sidewall to add extra strength. <S> Needless to say... the magnet has not come off <S> (and yes, this is from years of camping in the heat/cold/rain etc.)
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Besides epoxies, polyurethane based adhesives work well also. If you don't own a soldering iron, you could try using a nail held in pliers and heating with a flame device like a cigarette lighter.
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Help with Garbage Disposal install and high drain pipe The drain pipe for my sink sits pretty high, and then the sink-bowels holes are pretty close to each other. Below is the best my friend and I could do to make this work, and I just realized we need to baffle T to keep the pressure of the disposal from spurting out to the other bowl. Question is, have you ever seen this High of a p-trap and it will actually work? With water, works fine but I am afraid of using the disposal because of the low-p trap and high drain pipe for the waster to travel that high to make its way out. I live in a condo, so cannot change anything behind the wall. Any ideas or recommendations of how I can best make this work properly? Much appreciated. <Q> Your options are to: Raise the disposal output (with a different disposal) <S> Raise the sink (with a different, shallower sink, or at least a shallow drain for the disposal) <S> Lower the drain at the wall <A> As you've noticed, your disposal will always be full of water because the outlet is lower than the trap weir. <S> A trap is measured from the top of the trap bend, to the trap weir. <S> This depth should be between 2 - 4" (according to plumbing codes), to maintain a proper trap. <S> You'll notice that your trap depth is much more than that, and includes your garbage disposal. <S> The "proper" way to correct the problem in your situation, is to lower the drain pipe or get rid of the disposal. <S> Alternative Solution: <S> Depending on your location, plumbing codes may allow gray water pumps. <S> If they do, you could install one so that the outlet of the sink and disposal go into the gray water basin. <S> Then the pump outlet would connect to the drain, and pump the waste water out of the basin. <S> I'm not sure <S> if gray water pumps can be used with garbage disposals, you'd have to check with the manufacturer to be sure. <A> Old Thread but my inputs. <S> I'd cap the drain at the wall then cut a hole in the floor and run a new pipe and re connect to the drain under the floor ... <S> Fairly easy and neat ..
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The drain into the wall needs to be below that of the disposal and sink, there's no way to beat gravity with this.
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What could cause a temperature variance between our kitchen and the rest of the house? Our newly remodeled kitchen holds a temperature that averages about 5 degrees cooler than the remainder of the house. The house thermostat is set at 70 degrees, and the kitchen has been as low as 63. The furnace servicemen measured the temperature of the outside wall at 65 degrees. They believe that is a bit cool, even for an outside wall. They increased the furnace fan speed, but it has not helped. I am wondering if the drywall contractors neglected to install insulation before they attached the drywall. Could the lack of insulation on one outside wall and one wall between the kitchen and garage account for the temperature difference? I should add that we are new owners of this house and have no history or way to discovery if this was true of the house before we moved in or had the kitchen remodeled. <Q> Increasing the fan speed is an indication of a not-very good furnace serviceman. <S> Whatever that did, it did it everywhere in the house, so the kitchen would have the same relative temperature. <S> An energy consultant can help you, and bring an IR camera that can "see" if a wall is insulated. <S> You'll also want to "balance" the vents, which means turning down dampers in overheated rooms. <S> The space under your cabinets might be extra cold, as it may be bare floor boards with no finished floor. <A> I use a Black and Decker Thermal Leak Detector to compare the temperature of the walls around rooms, windows, floors, etc. <S> With it you can determine whether an outside wall in the kitchen is colder than one in another part of the house. <S> Also, you can remove the cover plate on an outlet on a suspected wall and use a flashlight to check for insulation. <A> Was any of the ducting worked on during the remodel? <S> Was it cleaned out afterwards? <S> If not, that could compromise airflow. <S> Assuming the work was permitted, it would have required inspection for insulation in most areas.
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You can sometimes add floor insulation to bring up a particular room's perceived temperature.
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How do I stop my in-cabinet lights from falling out? I bought a house three months ago and I'm slowly getting around to different projects. We have beautiful halogen in-cabinet lights above our kitchen sink but the light fixtures seem to fall out every three weeks. I haven't gotten around to pushing the last batch in just yet. There are many that have fallen out and are dangling: And a couple that are burnt out. I'll swap the bulbs out tonight. What can I do to keep these from falling out? I don't see a way to secure them more effectively. Should I buy pieces of cork to wedge in there? I want to be able to get them down when it's time to change the bulb however. Edit A few more pictures: Light from the side - there are small plastic "tension" clips that don't seem to be doing their job anymore: From the rear: Light from the front (a bit dark) There is a significant gap between the top of the hole that the lights are mounted in and the bottom of the cabinet above. I can't directly attach the bulb to the cabinet above. I am also concerned about using any form of adhesive as these are halogen lights and they get quite hot... <Q> I have similar looking lights in my cabinets. <S> The tabs on the side are meant to engage a plastic retaining collar mounted to the cabinet. <S> The previous owners did not install the collars, but they did leave them behind in the back of one of the cabinets. <S> Unfortunately, there were 3 missing. <S> For those three, I used a staple gun to make a little lip just inside the edge of the hole. <S> Here's a picture of where I would put the staple(s) in your cabinet. <S> My lights had 4 tabs, so I used 4 staples in the proper position. <S> I also used a screwdriver to back the staples out a bit for a better fit. <S> The first one I did I just pried the staple out a bit. <S> But for the subsequent ones I held the screwdriver against the edge of the hole and just stapled over the top. <S> Then to install the lights, make sure the tabs and the staples are NOT aligned, insert the light, and give it a little twist to slide the tabs over the staples. <A> So 6 years later I'll post what I did to fix this. <S> Basically, I took a small flat brace, a spacer and a wood screw to retain the lights in place. <S> I spray painted everything black so it would blend and screwed it in just tight enough that the brace could be swiveled out of the way in order to access the puck and change the bulb. <S> Here are some pictures: The brace, assembled: <S> The constituent parts for the brace assembly: <S> Puck light with the brace attached: <S> A couple of the lights still try to fall out a little in the front, but it isn't as noticeable as it used to be! <S> This is now one of our rental properties and the tenants have never complained. <S> Good enough! <A> These are called puck lights resembling a hockey puck. <S> here is one that is shown with the extra sleeve that is removable. <S> It appears, since the install rings are missing, the cut hole size is too large to allow the clips to hold the light snugly. <S> To remedy this and since halogen lights get really hot, a high quality aluminum tape used in ductwork to re-line the cut edges of the hole to create a smaller inside diameter. <S> The tape comes in 2 or 3 inch widths so it would need to be sliced into thinner strips to make it easier to manage into the openings. <S> It may take a number of layers to do the trick, try a few layers at a time, this stuff sticks incredibly well on clean surfaces. <S> The tape would need to kept accurately to the face of the panel, since the clips are so close to the <S> The well placed staples look viable, once it is hooked, it should stay. <S> Be careful about splitting the veneer with the staples needing to be so close to the surface to get the clips to engage. <S> Small office staples would be handy. <A> Basically find a piece of straight wire <S> the size of a matchstick (obviously don't use a matchstick for safety reasons) and glue it to down the edge of the fitting. <S> This will then reduce the space within the fitting and make a nice snug fitting... <S> You can test the best configuration by randomly placing different gauge wire into the gap. <S> You may even decide to fit multiple spacers around the fitting. <S> I see there is a small hole in the casing, It may be that you can fit the spacer into that hole <S> , please just make sure that there are no wires near the hole... <S> if there are, its best to avoid the hole completely. <S> Once you have a spacer configuration that best fills the hole, i would actually glue the spacer to the casing. <S> above: the different spacer configurations.
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I agree, this fitting is missing a casing, an alternative to the staple (which is a good idea btw) is to reduce the space with a piece of wire...
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Why does my bathroom door make a cracking sound when opening it? My bathroom door makes a cracking sound whenever I open it. When the screws are tight against the hinges, it makes the cracking sound when I open the door. But when I loosen each screw, the cracking sound stops. Is there a better solution than just loosening the screws? <Q> First guess: <S> sticky paint. <S> With the screws loose, there's less contact between paint on either side. <S> See also <S> Doors are sticky and noisy when opened? <A> It could be a couple things... <S> The door has swollen due to high humidity in the bathroom. <S> The hinges weren't installed perfectly straight. <S> If the hinges don't all line up perfectly, they will rotate slightly in their cutouts, causing a creaking noise. <S> Again, loosening the screws will give them some play. <S> The solution here would be to align (or maybe replace) the hinges. <A> This happened when I replaced my hinges. <S> Nothing was rubbing, as the door "popped" or "cracked" when only moved back and forth. <S> Oiling the new hingesdidn't solve the problem. <S> As it turned out, the noise was coming from a hinge mortise. <S> On the whole it seemed set properly, being level and plumb &c. <S> I removed all three screws and the noise stopped. <S> I ran a blade around the hinge to give it a tad more wiggle room and replaced the screws. <S> The noise came back. <S> I removed the screws once more, caulked in the hinge and left well enough alone.
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Loosening the hinge screws would allow the door a little play to fit in the opening better, causing less friction. The solution would be better ventilation, letting the door dry and sealing it (including top and bottom), or even planing down the edge a little.
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Water seeping out of grout in exterior corner of tiled shower curb I have a two year old tiled shower with glass enclosure. The grout is sanded grout. The exterior corner of the shower curb is leaking a small bit of water after every shower. Over time it has corroded the paint and molding that butts up to the tiled curb. The leak is through the grout. No water exits on top of the curb. The shower enclosure is caulked with 100% silicone in the places specified by the installation instructions. The only weird thing to me is that the bottom channel sits directly on a grout line. I'm wondering if water is seeping into the grout and working its way outside. Any ideas what could be wrong? Pictures show leak location on exterior of curb and the opposite interior side of the shower curb. <Q> This is not an answer, per se, but so far has solved the issue. <S> I called the original tile installer to take a look. <S> He pulled the tile piece that is to the left of the leaking grout corner. <S> We inspected the liner and anything else we could see. <S> The leak must have been very slow because there was minimal damage inside--no wood rot. <S> The exact cause of the leak could not be determined, but the tile guy sealed the liner edge behind the curb corner's vertical and horizontal tile pieces with some kind of rubberized sealant (not silicone) to make a water dam. <S> Then used extra tile and grout mix we had to make it look new again. <S> So far it is holding up. <S> Then again, the leak is very slow. <S> Hopefully, I'm not back on here in a few weeks or months with a different answer! <A> The leak is from inside the shower door. <S> Take out shower door units and you will most likely see no sealant where door bottom meets tile. <S> The sealant must be applied prior to door install. <A> Water can behind the tile if the grout has hairline cracks which happens over time as home settles. <S> Grout needs to be maintained. <S> Will will run down backboard and if the floor or pan is pitched correctly water will run to the drain and no problem.
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If pitched or has shifted towards a corner water can drip out of shower, behind glass, track, door and tile where it is soaked up by the drywall, baseboard or subfloor.
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Can I blow dryer exhaust into a pillow case or sheet? Go ahead and laugh. It's okay. Before you do, though, hear me out. My dryer has been drying less and less lately. Today, it stopped drying. Now I have a full load of wet laundry and it's all the clothes I got. I just tried cleaning my exhaust duct/vent/whatever with one of those things with the bristles and the coily "handle", but I have had no luck. I tried cleaning it from inside the house and outside, but nothing. The dryer is blowing out exhaust out the back, though, so I know it's doing it's share of the work. However, even with the exhaust hose hooked up, I feel absolutely no air blowing out of the vent outside. I've peered down its full length with an LED flashlight from the outside and even stuck my cell phone up in it and snapped a clear pic from the inside and I see no blockages. I've even felt along the length of the exhaust hose while the dryer was going and felt no air escaping through tears or around the gaskets that hold it to the wall and the back of the dryer. I am just going to call someone to come and do it, but, being the week of Thanksgiving and all, I doubt I'll be able to get anyone here until next week. Meanwhile, I have a load of laundry that needs to be dried. Therefore, I've come up with the temporary -- and idiotic -- idea to attach a pillow case to the end and let it rip. However, the idea of dying in a fire just days before the delicious Thanksgiving feast leaves me sort of questioning whether or not I should do this. Had I a longer hose, I'd just stick it out the garage door and let it rip. However, I don't, so I won't. What do I do about this mess? Somebody help me. <Q> I'm presuming you're using the pillow case as a lint filter. <S> The bigger problem will be humidity. <S> You'll be putting all of the moisture from the wet clothes into the air. <S> If you can swing it, you might be well off getting some flex dryer duct and running the end out the window while you're doing laundry. <A> Well, I am answering my own question here. <S> (or at least "Yes, I did!"). <S> I am sure it's safe so long as you keep an eye on it. <S> The pillow case didn't get absurdly hot, either. <S> After about 40 minutes, my load was done. <S> Now that I got my vent cleaned today, I should see even faster drying times since the pillow case method wasn't without its share of airflow resistance. <S> No laughing at the outdated laminate floor as that was there when I bought the place <S> (so I guess you can still laugh at me a little). <S> Also, no laughing at the outdated 90's pillowcase design. <S> Do mind the mess. <S> The second pic is what they pulled out of my vent today. <S> No wonder there was no airflow! <A> In the winter, I disconnect my (electric) dryer exhaust hose, plug the hole in the wall and put a knee high panty hose on the end. <S> Why waste heat and no more bloody noses from the dry winter air.
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Then you won't need the pillowcase at all, which might cause some other problems due to back pressure/poor airflow (e.g., it might take longer for your clothes to dry, and it might cause the dryer to run hotter). The first pic is of my pillow case experiment. After a couple loads, this makes the room really, really, REALLY humid (I've been there). The answer is "Yes, you can!" Very easy to clean the lintel out of.
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Why does my dishwasher detergent get stuck? My dishwasher isn't working like it's supposed to. Everything seems to be working fine, but then after the machine stops, I open the door and see that my glasses and plates are suspiciously grimy. When I expose the detergent cup, I see this: Clearly the detergent (I've tried a couple types) isn't flowing out from its cup like it should be. What's the fix here? <Q> If you need to expose the cup to investigate, it is not opening at all. <S> The spring loaded cover is held closed over the detergent by a little catch. <S> There is a solenoid in the door that pulls on the catch, letting the cover spring open. <S> This happens at the start of the main wash cycle. <S> The cover is not that water tight, water normally leaks in, causing the detergent to start caking. <S> Once the cover opens, exposing the detergent to the main water jets, the minor caking is not an issue, all the detergent gets washed out. <S> When the cover doesn't open, the main water jets cannot wash out the damp detergent. <S> The reason the cover does not open usually is the solenoid fails and needs replacement, though it's possible something else is at fault. <S> Faulty wiring, faulty relay or triac on the control board, some sort of timer issue, etc. <S> If you can locate the solenoid, try measuring the resistance of the coil with the wiring removed. <S> If it's either hardly any or nearly infinite, the coil is at fault. <S> Solenoids can fail for other reasons, so reasonable resistance does not mean it is not at fault. <S> Unless you can observe something out of place, like a broken wire, that is probably the extent of DIY troubleshooting. <A> bcworkz s answer provides the correct solution, the cover isn't opening, and goes on to explain why that might be: <S> Faulty wiring, faulty relay or triac on the control board, some sort of timer issue, etc. <S> Just in case somebody else comes here with a caking problem, I would like to add another possible cause of the cover not opening: <S> It might be some of the content of the dishwasher that is blocking it, so it cannot open. <S> This has happened to me a few times (most often when washing large items). <S> So if you are having this problem sometimes, but not always , check that you haven't blocked the space where it is supposed to open into. <S> This happens more often if the cover is hinged instead of sliding. <A> The reason it does not open is because when the door flips open it hits the dish rack, at least that's what happens to my Kitchenaid.
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The reason the cover does not open usually is the solenoid fails and needs replacement, though it's possible something else is at fault. The cover of the detergent cup is not opening when its supposed to.
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How do I ground my replacement outside porch light? I am attempting to replace an outside porch light. After removing the old light, I found the metal electrial box had the ground supply attached to a screw. The new light has a green ground wire and I was wondering if attaching it to the green screw on the bracket would be sufficient enough for grounding, or, do I need to remove the ground supply from the screw and pigtail it to the ground wire from the new light fixture? See the attached photo of the electrical box. <Q> You'll also want to use a pigtail, to connect the supply grounding conductor to the grounding screw on the metal box. <S> You should not rely on the support straps attachment means to provide an adequate grounding path. <A> The Grounding Wire can be seen in the background of the image, (you can see it has been painted white), generally, <S> by attaching the mounting bracket to the housing, you create an earth connection, this is not the case, when the casing is made of plastic or has a non-conductive coating. <S> You can connect your earth to the green screw <S> provided that there is a good earth connection, this can be tested relatively easily by using a multi-meter with a continuity test setting <S> Based on the image above, you can check that you have a good earth connection by connecting one lead to the earth wire(coming from the electrical outlet) and the other to the point which you will be using for an earth. <A> You can just attach the green ground wire for the new light to the green screw. <S> The green screw is connected to the bracket which is connected to the box that the ground supply is connected to. <S> So, you'll have a good ground connection for your light.
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You're going to want to connect the fixture grounding conductor directly to the supply grounding conductor, using either a twist-on wire connector or crimp connector.
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Why does my central heating unit continue to run after reaching its set temperature? Why will the central heating unit continue to run after reaching the set temperature? It does not read that it is reaching a higher temperature, it just continues to run at the reached temperature set. <Q> If this is a forced air system, the blower will continue to run for a specific amount of time after the unit stops producing heat. <S> The unit will no longer be producing heat, but the blower will continue to run to spread the heat that was produced when the unit was full on. <S> If it didn't, a lot of the heat produced would be wasted. <S> Some units use a heat detection circuit to determine when the blower should turn off. <S> Most however, simply keep the blower on for a predetermined amount of time. <A> There are also a set of switches in the unit that relay the thermostat demands to the unit. <S> They control how long the blower runs after reaching the desired temp. <S> In time, though, those switches (that look like little pieces of aluminum foil) will wear out and cause the unit to run for long periods of time because they won't tell the blower to turn off. <S> I suggest timing your unit. <S> If it keeps running after the thermostat clicks off for more than 5 minutes then you would need to get the unit checked out. <S> There is also a possibility it could be the thermostat, but that is not as likely. <A> Electronic thermostats will only display whole degrees, but most (this varies from one manufacturer to the next) will measure fractions of a degree and switch the relay that controls the HVAC perhaps after it reaches 72.5 for example if the target is 72 (in heat mode). <S> They may also vary in the target temperature in cool mode vs. heat mode. <S> The underlying explanation is that the electronic components are measuring fractions of a degree but only displaying whole degrees and operating according to the underlying programming that is opaque to the user unfortunately. <A> Thermostats have a temperature range around the target temperature. <S> If you set it to 72, it may have a 2 degree range allowing the temperature to fluctuate from 71 to 73. <S> Without this, the hvac would be constantly cycling on and off, shortening the life of the hvac and reducing your energy efficiency. <S> On some thermostats, the range is adjustable. <A> It's like inertia, but with heat; just like a motor spins down after the power is off, furnaces still have some heat in them after the flame is shut down. <S> Thermostats have a feature called an anticipator . <S> It will shut down the furnace when the ambient temperature gets close to the desired settings. <S> The system will then run the fan for the remainder of the cycle as the accumulated heat will be dissipated in the air flow.
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Most units run for a set amount of time after reaching desired temp.
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extra thermostat, electric dampers and 1 furnace I have a problem similar to others that have posted: balancing heating/cooling throughout the house. I have already played with adjusting the vent's air flow as well as the manual dampers in the basement runs.... nothing seems to work sufficiently. So I am trying to figure out how to add both an extra thermostat for the bedrooms and electric dampers to control the air flow to just the bed rooms when needed. My thought is to install electric dampers on the main level HVAC branches off the main run. The trick is I need something to help with the very simple logic: When both thermostats on are, all vents are open. When The Main is on but bedroom off, all vents remain open. But when just the bedroom thermostat calls for heat and the main doesn't, the dampers close to redirect the heat to those rooms only. I have 7 vents in the main house and 5 in the bedrooms. I figure I can install a mechanical damper to control overpressurization if that becomes a problem. The real trick is something to control the logic. The electric dampers will run me around $400 for the 7 that need controlling so even another few hundred would be worth it for comfortable rooms. Any ideas? EDIT: I have been thinking about this a lot the last few days and have bounced it off some especially handy family members. I think I may have some solutions... I was thinking about it backwards. I would install dampers that are usually closed vs open. When power is applied, they would open. So when the main house calls for heat, the dampers open and heat goes all over the house (although mainly on the first floor). When the second thermostat in the bedroom calls for heat and the main doesn't the dampers would be closed and heat would pump towards the bedrooms. It turns out wiring two thermostats in parallel isn't such a big deal as long as they are both set to heat or cool and if I install a backflow damper, I can ensure I don't do damage to the hvac system. So I just need to wire the main thermostat to not only the furnace but also to a power panel that opens up the dampers No computer controller needed, right? What am I missing? <Q> If the main thermostat doesn't live in one of the bedrooms (probably doesn't), you'll lose the feedback loop that makes the thermostat work. <S> In other words, the thermostat will stay cold, and keep calling for heat, while the bedrooms are broiling. <S> Try blocking 50% of the area of the register with cardboard behind the grate. <S> This is a weekend project. <S> You'll put some baffles in, wait an hour or so, make some adjustments, wait, rinse, repeat. <S> Buy a couple cheap thermometers and leave them in different parts of the house so you can check on them. <S> Just be careful not to block too much airflow. <S> You should take the temperature of the air coming out of the vent closest to the furnace before you start. <S> If it rises notably after you're done, you might want to undo some. <S> Also, if there's not a decent gap under the bedroom doors for airflow, leave the doors open, trim them, or install a through-door vent. <S> If you sleep with the door closed and there's no way for the air to circulate out of the room <S> , it won't get enough airflow, and the room will get cold. <A> Why re-invent the wheel? <S> The way a multi-zone forced-air HVAC system usually works is the duct systems for each zone are separated early and only one damper is used per zone. <S> Obviously if your duct system isn't designed with that in mind, you'll have to use more dampers. <S> Also, a zone controller is used to control the dampers. <S> Some can handle multiple dampers on a single zone, otherwise you need a damper relay. <S> See <S> Do thermostat-controlled, auto-adjust HVAC vents exist? <A> Try this site for the dampers: <S> http://www.famcomfg.com/hvac-damper.html <S> They make a 24V version <S> but I would power them from a separate transformer than the furnace power. <S> You can get them in either normally open or normally closed. <S> You said: <S> The trick is I need something to help with the very simple logic: <S> When both thermostats on are, all vents are open. <S> When The Main is on but bedroom off, all vents remain open. <S> The first two statements are the same so one is not needed. <S> So if the main is on all functions as it used to. <S> The last statement you made will control the damper to stop heat to the main room. <S> So, you just need one damper that is normally open but will be closed when the bedroom-only thermostat calls for heat (or cool). <S> Then the relay that controls the damper to the main has to be interconnected so if main thermostat is on then that relay cannot be actuated. <S> Something like this <S> : (It would be very convenient if both thermostats had an extra set of unused contacts. <S> Otherwise you will have to actuate a separate relay with each thermostat to close and open the contacts in my drawing.) <S> You could do this with very small relays as the damper coil shouldn't draw too much current. <S> Good Luck!
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But when just the bedroom thermostat calls for heat and the main doesn't, the dampers close to redirect the heat to those rooms only. If the problem is that the bedrooms are always cold (assuming winter), and you want them warmer, another shot at balancing the system is probably in order. Do this on the vents in the warm part of the house, and make sure the bedroom vents are open all the way. Get aggressive (I have one vent in my family room where I blocked the entire thing with a sheet of cardboard with one 2" hole). There are already parts to make this happen.
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Are extension cords safe for permanent use? I recently learned (via a rant from an electrician's son and some internet research) that the standard buy-anywhere cheapo extension cords are a big cause of electrical fires and are not recommended to be left plugged in. So say I DO want to leave an extension cord plugged in permanently around the house. Is there some type of cord or some feature of a cord that is safer for this? <Q> If you need to permanently connect an electrical device, you should use approved wires and/or cable assemblies installed in an approved manner. <A> The Uniform Fire Code covers extension cords. <S> They are for temporary immediate use of an appliance and are not for permanent installation. <S> The code is not available online but here is a page that references it: http://www.grand.k12.ut.us/district/fire.htm#anchor157315 <S> However, extension cords are different from power strips (AKA Temporary Power Tap) <S> in that power strips with circuit breakers or breaker power switches have built in over-current protection. <S> Power strips may be used for long term installation. <S> Here is a page with more details: http://www.nccu.edu/health-safety/eohs/extensionCordsPowerStrips.cfm <S> So to answer your question, use a power strip with over-current protection if you need more outlets. <S> Be sure to check as some power strips only have an on/off switch (no over-current protection) <A> As Tester101 says, extension cords are not meant for permanent wiring. <S> If you really need an outlet in a given location, you should consider having one installed. <S> But there are a number of things to keep in mind when you are using extension cords. <S> Don't staple them in place (big risk of damage) <S> Don't use a cord that is rated for less amperage/wattage than you are using Don't try to use a two wire/two prong cord for a three prong device <S> Don't octopus <S> the cord (adding a multitap adapter at the end of the cord) <S> Avoid using extension cords for any high draw devices, such as refrigerators, toaster ovens, irons, hair dryers, etc. <S> Don't leave exterior cords plugged in <S> In general, the use of three prong, heavier (wire gauge, not weight), shorter cords are preferable. <S> And make sure they are out of the way and not a trip hazard (no crossing thresholds, other footpaths).
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Extension cords that are not listed, labeled, or rated for permanent (long term) use are all temporary wiring devices.
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Can I use particle board over wood plank flooring to smooth it out for laminate flooring? I need some help! I live in a prewar building, I am looking for a cheap and easy way to install a 10mm floating laminate floor. I ripped up the old carpet to find 1inch wood plank subfloor. The floor boards are squeaky and loose. I secured and tightened loose planks. I was told I need to add a 1/2" plywood subfloor over the plank floor in order to install laminate. I need this to be as inexpensive and easy as possible. Can I use particle board just to smooth out the floor in order to install a floating laminate floor? WouldThat be less expensive and easier to install than plywood? I know I cannot install the laminate over the planks. I would hate to have to re carpet so any advice would be appreciated!! <Q> I'd personally choose 1/2" OSB. <S> It's inexpensive, and ought to hold up reasonably well, even against limited moisture. <S> DO NOT USE particle board. <S> It swells way up and then DISSOLVES if it gets wet. <A> There is no doubt that particle board or MDF would be less expensive than plywood, especially initially. <S> However, particle board is not suitable as an underfloor (or underlayment) unless it is covered by a waterproof membrane such as vinyl. <A> I would carefully consider the full cost of the job as opposed to just looking at the cost for the underlayment material. <S> In the complete analysis how does the cost of the underlayment compare to the cost of the flooring itself? <S> The total cost of the project also needs to consider the potential future cost of ripping out substandard materials for later replacement should they fail for some reason.
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When particle board is wet long term, it basically dissolves. When you consider things this way it can often help to leading toward the better materials than the "cheapest right now" selection. Particle board would be normally be low on my list of choices.
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Which end of an Allen Wrench should I be using? When using Allen Wrenches (Hex Keys), I've always held onto the long end because I figured it gave me better leverage and torque. Sometimes, in hard to reach places, I would hold the short end. Then I saw these ball end hex keys . They claim that: The advantage is that their ball end make it easier to slide the wrench into the receiving slot. In my opinion, they've put the ball end on the wrong side. Have I been using these incorrectly my whole life? <Q> The ball end of the wrench fits less securely in the socket than the squared off end so you can't apply as much torque without risk of the wrench slipping or stripping the bolt head. <S> So it makes sense that if your wrench only has the ball end on one end, that it's on the long end <S> so you have to use the short end to hold the wrench to limit how much torque you can apply. <S> That preserves the more securely fitting squared off short end for applying the most torque on the fastener while you hold the long end. <S> Its ok <S> to use either end of the wrench on the fastener and sometimes space limitations will force you to use one or the other. <A> There is another whole class of hex wrench to consider as well. <S> These are called Tee Handle Allen wrenches. <S> You can get these in both regular straight cut ends and in the ball end style. <S> For many assembly and disassembly operations they are superior to the old standard L shaped allen wrench. <S> The Tee Handle allows for a reasonable amount of torque to be applied to the bolt or screw. <S> . <S> . . <A> The Ball end is not designed to apply breaking or final torque it is intended for faster easier removal once loosened.
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The ball end permits the tool to be used to tighten or loosen the fastener without having to be axially aligned with the hex slot.
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Is using the light switch screw OK to ground a wire? My house was built in 1950 and several light switches do not have ground wires. I believe there is no ground wire since I cannot find a wire that's bare - they are all coated. I want to install a Lutron Motion Sensor , but it requires to connect to a ground wire. This is for a hallway light that's also controlled by another switch at the opposite end. When I installed it without connecting the wires that are expected to be connected to ground, nothing happened. Meaning, the switch did not work. I assume it was because the documentation was correct, that ground needs to be connected. The person at the hardware store said to only connect the ground wires to the screws that afix the light switch. Is this OK? Is this safe? <Q> If there's no grounding means in the switch box, and no neutral wire present, then the switch you have simply won't work. <S> Not an incandescent lamp, you say? <S> Well, then, just rewire your house! <A> Connecting the ground wires to the screws only works if the metal electrical box is itself grounded, which is unlikely the case if your cable does not have a bare wire. <S> Also, I believe they started using a separate ground wire at the end of 1950s (at least in my part of the country). <S> In any case, it is pretty easy to confirm (power down the switch at the breaker box, remove the switch and see if there are 3 or two wires going to the box. <S> If there are three, you are in luck) <S> Even if there are two wires, I doubt it would be impossible to get the sensor working without the shared ground. <S> I would double check the wiring and connections first and look at the circuit to makes sure that the ground is truly required (pictures would help) <A> I looked at the switch's instructions and it definitely says it needs a ground to function. <S> Take a look at your service panel and see if there're armored cables. <S> Otherwise your house probably predates grounding.
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It is possible that the switch box if metal is grounded by an armored cable connected to it, in which case you could install a jumper wire from a ground screw in the back of the switch box to your control. Get a different switch that's designed to run itstiny control current through the attached light bulb filiment.
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LG Dishwasher, no power at all So I have a relatively new dishwasher that just completely stopped working the other day. It's still under warranty but before going though all the hassle I want to check if there is nothing simple it could be. I have checked all the basics such as fuses in the plug and if the socket actually works with other appliances. I have not yet opened it up but have no problem with doing so if there are any good ideas as to what could be the problem. I remember the night before it stopped showing any signs of life it made some strange beeps just after finishing a cycle. So far the net has not provided any clues. its a LG, not sure on the exact model and seems like each store sells the same thing with different model numbers anyhow. It has the text 'Inverter DirectDrive' and 'TrueSteam' on the front <Q> So got the company out to fix it under guarantee and turns out it is just a very poorly designed system for buttons. <S> It seems to be a AC Hum touch type button. <S> The dish washer has small sponge (5mm x 5mm) wrapped with some conductive material which is meant to be attached to metal rods which forms the button inside the machine. <S> This gives the 'soft touch' as there is no moving parts like a normal button. <S> The problem was that these little sponges had fallen off the metal post which stopped it from working the way it was intended. <S> Simple fix to re-attach the sponge back into place. <S> Well the fix from the guy that was sent out lasted all of 3 days before it broke again so <S> this time I opened it up and fixed it myself (hopefully permanently). <S> Dead simple job, about 15 minutes taking the front panel off and glued them back into place with some contact adhesive. <S> Hope <S> this will help someone else that has problems with a 'soft touch' button that will not work any more. <S> Should be a similar type system for other soft touch buttons found on appliances. <A> Check the appliance's power cable shows no signs of damage. <S> The appliance's manual will state if the appliance has a separate and accessible fuse (unlikely I think). <S> If the front display panel shows no indications of power - no lights/LEDs illuminated, completely blank LCD etc, no sounds from the pump when controls set to drain etc. <S> In that case you should really return it to the vendor under warranty and get a refund or replacement (your choice) Opening it up will void your warranty and leave you liable for the cost of any parts that need replacing. <A> I have just finished fixing our LD1454TFES2 LG Truesteam DirectDrive. <S> It developed an intermittent power fault where the power button would only work.. sometimes. <S> We scratched our heads , stood on one leg , crossed fingers as that seemed to help... <S> well it did, sometimes, then it finally wouldn't power on at all. <S> I checked all the blogs and heaps of people have had the same problem. <S> but dogmatic69's post above is the best answer on the internet! <S> LG know this is a problem - since later versions of the part AGL73457207, the Panel Assembly, have an improved design to stop the pads slipping off! <S> ( raised circular housings on the interior panel at each button point.) <S> Great machine - but <S> we almost lost it - worth fixing. <A> Same problem as dogmatic (above) described - disassembled door and removed the board and used a contact adhesive as suggested (superglue)- which I think insulated the carbon felt pad from the metal rod. <S> This didn't work. <S> So I reopened the door to access the assembly a second time, painted the felt-pad to rod connection with silver dag, to ensure a good electrical contact. <S> For good measure folded some aluminium foil and placed this between the "button" on the external casing and the felt pad. <S> Now works better than ever :-) <S> The whole process literally takes 10 minutes to fix. <S> Make sure the dishwasher plug is out and the board is not live when you start moving it around - as you might end up with a more expensive problem than when you started (or worse!) <S> A very clever switch - but awful manufacturing. <S> LG should hang their heads in shame. <A> While @raterus makes a very sensible point, I can say that @richard rivera is correct -- the Kabuki of turning off the breaker for an extended period accompanied by several open/close cycles actually does work.
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The little sticky pads that connect the internal buttons to the plastic shell (Panel Assembly) had simply slipped off. I've read elsewhere that the power switches are themselves prone to failure, but I didn't touch any of the panel switches -- just latched and unlatched the door several times while the power was off, and was surprised to see the machine power up thereafter.
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Provisioning for a hypothetical electric car I'm doing a remodel on my house which involves building a new garage. I have no plans to get a new car soon but presumably will in 1-5 years. How should I wire for an undetermined electric vehicle (Leaf? Tesla?). What current should I wire for? What gauge? Should it be an independent circuit? What receptacle? Any other advice? Follow up question:I realized I have a 50A 240V run to behind my stove which I capped and put a blank on when I remodeled the kitchen and switched to a gas range. This appears to be 6/3 (+ ground) and has a 50A breaker-pair. So if I splice to a new 6/3 cable and run that to an empty box at the front of the garage, does that seem like a good (and up-to-code) plan? <Q> See SAE J1772 <S> In the 2009 standard, two charging levels are defined. <S> Voltage Phase Peak currentAC Level 1 <S> 120 <S> V Single phase <S> 16 AAC Level 2 240 V Split phase <S> 32 A (2001) 80 A (2009) <S> Nissan say Most Nissan LEAF owners recharge their cars at home. <S> The 6.6kW charger option lets you charge your Nissan LEAF at home in just 4 hours using a 32A Home Charging Unit <S> For that option you'd need a dedicated 240 volt 32 amp circuit. <S> You probably shouldn't fit a regular 240 V 32A outlet because the J1772 system requires some intelligence be built in to the supply side (the charging unit). <S> In some countries the government will pay you up to $1600 to have a charging point fitted in your garage. <S> If you live in such a country, it might be worthwhile taking advantage of such offers whilst they are still available. <A> The same charger can be set to use less . <S> Breaker Draw Approximate <S> (Amps) <S> (Amps) <S> Charge Time (hours) <S> 90 70 <S> 4 <S> 80 <S> 64 <S> 4.2 <S> 70 <S> 56 <S> 4.7 <S> 60 <S> 48 <S> 5 50 <S> 40 <S> 6 <S> It comes with a 25 foot cord, so placement is not critical. <S> The connector is on the driver's side of the vehicle. <S> I note that the Nissan Leaf has the charger connection at the front of the car (below the hood front), so <S> an outlet at the end of the garage is probably more convenient if there is a choice. <A> For a Nissan Leaf, your best bet is a 240V 40 amp circuit to run the charging station. <S> The car will only draw <S> ~32 amps <S> but you need to derate the circuit so you'd use 40A. <S> No neutral is required or used. <S> Your best bet would probably be to extend the 6/3 circuit to a box. <S> Don't actually install any outlet until you get the charging station: some use a direct connection. <S> You'll also need to replace the breaker with a 40A. If you're looking at a Tesla S, you may want a larger circuit. <S> I'm not sure how high they go <S> but I'm pretty sure it would be able to use the 40A circuit, just for slower charging.
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Tesla's "High Power Wall Connector" option should have a 90 amp/240 volt breaker to serve 70 amps for a 4 hour recharge time. Until you actually have an electric car it may be best to leave that circuit terminated in a junction box of some sort and leave the fitting of a charging-unit until later.
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How can I repair cracks in a sports court? I have some cracks in my sport court - see images. What can I use to repair them? I imagine that I would use some kind of filler that would then set hard. This is in the Phoenix area which means that it gets extreme heat but the temperature rarely drops below freezing. <Q> In either case the filler will dry hard and be able to take the temperature extremes of your location. <S> Repair such as this is going to leave tracks where the filled cracks were and will still be highly visible due to the surface texture that was originally applied to the slab surface. <S> To get the best visual appearance you may want to subsequently consider prepping the surface and getting a new textured surface applied. <S> Before doing that however please do read on to the next paragraphs. <S> These cracks readily show that the soil under the slab is changing position and settling. <S> It also gives the appearance, due to the separation that has occurred, that the slab was built without any or a very limited amount of wire mesh and rebar installed. <S> Both wire and re-bar cannot prevent cracks but will prevent large separations and variation of surface height across the cracks in most cases except the most extreme soil movement, settling, or water erosion under the slab. <S> You will want to carefully evaluate conditions that led to the cracks in your slab. <S> If there is continued soil movement any repairs that you do will be only temporary and could lead to disappointment and loss due to the cost of the repairs. <S> In the worst cases it may very well be better in the long run to remove the sports equipment, break up the slab and remove it and the replace with a new slab that is installed in a way to prevent future cracks. <S> This would of course include plenty of wire mesh and rebar. <S> If the soil is unstable it may even be necessary to engineer a footing and/or deep peers that can stabilize your new slab. <S> If the cracks have been stable for a long time and you've seen no changes since the original incident then repairs with filler and a re-application of the textured surface may be a good longer term solution. <A> If it is pavement or concrete, Sika makes a product that will seal up the cracks. <S> Click here for website <S> The movement is severe though and it should be replaced with concrete and reinforcing wire. <S> This is only a fix until it cracks elsewhere. <S> It is a self leveling product that will fill the crack, seeping into the smaller areas filling those too. <S> So it does not make a thorough mess, after the tip is cut small enough to fit into the crack all the way to the bottom, and squeeze the trigger to fill the crack from the bottom up. <S> You can add a small tube to extend the tip a few inches, but make sure you have it secured very well, for if it falls off you will have a real mess on your hands! <S> The only down side to using this material is small voids under the surface, it will flow into them and waste material. <S> The way to combat this is to take DRY, free running fine sand and fill the crack half way up, Dry sand will fall to the bottom and not hang on the sides. <S> Use a paint brush to level out the sand in the crack. <S> This complicates the application of caulk but with care, you can still pull it off, just govern how far down the tip goes in so it does not plow the sand as you move the tip of the tube along the bottom of the now half filled crack. <S> Do not try to fill it all at once, fill it to the top as you move it along, but it will always settle in more. <S> Give it time to settle after the initial fill then top off afterwards, preferable before it sets. <A> Asphalt courts will always develop cracks. <S> I use a material called Deep Patch from a court surfacing material supplier, , mixed in with silica sand, and just a bit of portland cement. <S> The silica sand acts as an aggregate that has the exact same texture as the surface. <S> Even after patching a court, I always tell the customer beforehand that the cracks my very well come back out in a week, or a year. <S> It all depends on the subgrade of the asphalt, the age of the asphalt, and the thickness of the asphalt slab. <S> Asphalt just continues to develop new cracks over time.
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You could patch up these cracks with an epoxy filler or a cement product type filler.
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How do I replace this toilet shutoff valve? I need to replace a toilet shutoff valve (does not completely stop water flow) as part of process of fixing a leak I saw around the base of my toilet (suspect i need new wax ring??). I bought a new 1/4 turn shut off valve and turned off the main supply, but was not able to remove the old valve. I believe it's because this valve is soldered on and thus can not be screwed on/off and replaced as such? Is there another way to go about this, aside from cutting pipe and soldering (no torch, saw, experience...). Wondering is there is an additional valve i could install further down the line to the toilet (realizing this is not the best method)? Also, am i correct this is steel piping not copper? <Q> That's most likely a copper pipe covered in solder. <S> You can try scraping the solder off to see if you get down to some copper to verify. <S> Get this onto the pipe a close to the valve as you can, tighten the screw until it's snug, and spin it around the pipe making sure to keep spinning on the same location (you're making a cut, not treading the pipe or making a spiral). <S> After every few turns, tighten the screw a little more and eventually the pipe will break off. <S> Clean the pipe with some emery paper, and install a new compression style valve (this only requires a few wrenches (crescent or fixed, not a pipe wrench or pliers if you want to avoid teeth marks). <S> If you removed too much of the pipe, you may need to replace the escutcheon with a flatter style. <A> I don't actually think it's all that obvious from the picture just what you have; and if I had to guess, I say something chrome plated, not solder over copper, unless it was soldered within the last week. <S> Too uniform and shiny to my eye. <S> Pull the escutcheon out and take another picture to provide more data for guessing...and try a magnet if you think it might be steel or iron, but my money is on threaded chromed brass, pretty typical for bathroom fixtures. <S> If pulling the escutcheon out continues the same color (allowing for dirt) all the way to the wall, my confidence increases that that's what you have. <S> If it changes color drastically then copper looks more likely. <S> As for it not unthreading - well, that happens. <S> There's limited access behind a toilet, so you can't swing a big wrench, it's wet quite a lot of the time from condensation in the summer (most climates) plus any leakage, and it doesn't get moved for decades at a time. <S> Harsh cleaners can add to the corrosion potential. <S> Determination, penetrating oil and heat can all help, but sometimes all that happens is the pipe snaps off. <S> The Joy of Plumbing. <S> If it was a typical soldered copper pipe and you actually tried to unthread it with the force typically needed to unthread a threaded connection that has sat for a few years, the pipe would have twisted flat, in my experience. <S> So sorting out what it really is probably beats just taking a wrench to it. <S> The area very near the wall is a fine place to scrape, scratch or even lightly file to help sort out what it is, if it's not obvious from just pulling out the cover - you won't be making a compression connection that far back. <A> THE VALVE'S SIDES SHOW ITS A SCREW ON TYPE.. <S> NO ONE WOULD (NEED) <S> SOLDER IT ON. <S> TRY to see the ending threads on the pipe. <S> I use a sharp curved awl to also probe for them. <S> Then soak the threads with a good penetrating oil. <S> The longer time soaking, the better, and periodically tap on it with a hammer. <S> When you unscrew it with the longest wrench available, hold the pipe solidly (vice grips, etc.) <S> or you may easily unscrew it from the wall. <S> However that may be okay, and even better, if the water is shut off. <S> An additional loosening technique is to quickly focus heat on the valve threads so the pipe's threads are not heated as much. <S> Then quickly try unscrewing the valve before it cools much. <S> I like using a small lighter/torch, or a good soldering iron. <S> Once you beat this, your diy confidence will be justifiably stronger.
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A copper pipe cutter is cheap and easy to use:
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How do I add grounding to my old electrical wiring? This old house is (50's) is wired with cloth covered 12/2 Romex with no ground and all metal boxes. Can I just run a 12 ga or 14 ga solid wire between boxes and then to the ground bus of my service panel or do I have to replace all the wiring with new Romex? <Q> The rules on retrofitting grounds were greatly relaxed with the 2014 electrical code (NEC 2014). <S> Yes, now you can simply run bare or green wire between all your electrical boxes and back to the panel. <S> The ground wire must go back to the same panel as the conductors come out of (that's relevant if you have more than one panel). <S> The ground wires MUST be thick enough (generally as thick as the conductors) and can be thicker -- for instance a 12 AWG ground wire is not acceptable for a 10 AWG/30A dryer circuit, but it is acceptable for a 14 AWG/15A outlet circuit. <S> Here's the whopper: Multiple circuits can share grounds. <S> You don't have to home-run the ground all the way back to the panel <S> , you need only reach another grounded point whose pathway is thick enough. <S> So you can daisy-chain your grounds from box to box, as long as all the circuits you are grounding come out of the same panel. <S> Or, your 10 or 6 AWG ground to your range or dryer can be a "backbone" providing grounds to many other receptacles. <S> All ground splices must be done with the same rules as any other splices: inside a junction box or using some sort of splice listed for use outside of a box. <S> For details, see the National Electric Code, NFPA 70 (2014) Article 250 — Grounding and Bonding . <S> (NFPA now offers free access online to its codes and standards.) <A> I believe that it MAY be code-accepted to retrofit a grounding conductor as you describe. <S> It would need to follow the same path as the existing wire. <S> Check with your LOCAL electrical inspector before taking that on faith, though. <S> Considering what will have to be done to retrofit this wire, I believe that the sensible approach is new wiring (if you were going to rip things that far apart), or GFCI's and the old wiring with code-approved labeling noting the lack of ground on those circuits (if you were not going to rip things that far apart). <A> The relevant code section may be 250.130 with more detail in 250.130(C) on simply adding a ground wire to two prong outlets. <S> I found this in the draft code here <S> https://www.nfpa.org/assets/files/aboutthecodes/70/70-a2013-ropdraft.pdf <S> I'm assuming that it's the same in the final code. <S> The gist of it is this: (C) <S> Nongrounding Receptacle Replacement or Branch Circuit Extensions. <S> The equipment grounding conductor of a grounding-type receptacle or a branch-circuit extension shall be permitted to be connected to any of the following: (1) <S> Any <S> accessible point on <S> the grounding electrode system as described in 250.50 <S> (2) <S> Any <S> accessible point on <S> the grounding electrode conductor (3) <S> The equipment grounding terminal bar within the en-closure <S> where the branch circuit for <S> the receptacle or branch circuit originates (4) <S> To an equipment grounding conductor <S> that is part of another branch <S> circuit <S> that originates from the enclosure <S> where the branch circuit for the receptacle or branch circuit originates[ROP <S> 5–209] (5) <S> For grounded systems, the grounded service conductor within the service equipment enclosure (6) <S> For ungrounded systems, the grounding terminal bar within the service equipment enclosure
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Depending just how ungrounded your system is, you may also need to install a ground rod (or two, or three) so that your service panel ground bus is actually tied to ground. The ground wires can follow any feasible route, they don't need to travel with the conductors.
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Best solution to protect the floor while painting the walls For painting work I usually protect the floor using big sheets (like 4 x 4 meters) of transparent plastic sold in Asda that I spread around the room. However it can move a lot while I walk on it and then there are spaces left exposed. Also it's not very flat. Ideally I'd like something which covers 100% of the floor 100% of the time while being as flat as possible. Is there such a solution? <Q> Drop Cloths <S> The most common solution, is to use canvas drop cloths. <S> This has been the choice of the pros for many, many years. <S> Heavy Paper <S> 36 mil paper is a common choice when working over hard flooring. <S> It provides good spill protection, while also providing a bit of added drop protection. <S> Masonite Sheets <S> In higher end homes, where flooring can be quite expensive (and may be installed before construction is completed). <S> 1/8" - 1/4" Masonite sheets can be laid over a medium weight or Rosin paper , to provide good spill and drop protection. <A> Many contractors and painters use rosin paper as a floor barrier. <S> It comes in long rolls. <S> This paper protects against most spills and scratches. <S> It also is not very slick, so it doesn't slide around. <S> It is only 3 feet wide, so it is put down in strips and then taped together using masking tape. <S> The edges are also often taped up to baseboards or cabinetry to make a clean painting line, but use special edge tape if you want a very sharp line. <S> Painters also use canvas drop clothes which are heavy duty and reusable, but much more expensive. <A> After years of struggling with newspapers or plastic sheets I came to a simple solutions that works great for painting walls: I place the paint bucket over a flattened large cardboard box (roughly 1X1 meter. <S> Any other stiff material can work). <S> I push the cardboard right against the wall I am painting, and for each new section (most often after each roller dip in the paint bucket) <S> I move it along the wall (by about 30-50 CM). <S> This way you don't need to prep the floor cover but still have something to protect the floor as you paint. <A> Thus can solve your problem. <S> Pre-taped masking films one side has adhesive tapes, You can use adhesive tape on the floor, then open the plastic film. <S> If one pre-tape masking film cannot cover the whole floor, you can use another to cover with pasting the previous, till the whole floor is covered. <S> The pre-taped masking films can cut into certain shape by scissors, which can meet your need. <S> Due to adhesive on the floor, so it cannot move when you work and there is no space left exposed. <S> After using, only reveal it.
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You can use Pre-taped masking film covering floor for painting.
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How do I remove this stuck faucet valve cartridge? It's still in the casing, as I didn't want to remove the whole faucet. I tried lots of WD-40 and trying to tighten a little and then loosen. Someone told me to use a hair-dryer on it to heat it up a little. The thing just won't budge. I think I may have ruined the "nut." I'm obviously an amateur, but I don't want to be a failure. Click for full size image <Q> My cold side cartridge needed replacement. <S> (My valve assembly has manufacture date of 2007.) <S> I have a number of same Kohler Lavatory sets and have had to replace a few valve assemblies a few times. <S> Kohler has sent me entire retrofit valve set because many times, as was described in prior comments, it's difficult to break the seal of the top nut to get at and replace the cartridge. <S> I decided to get brave after reading the ideas from comments and decided to try to get at the cartridge. <S> This is what worked for me. <S> I used a vice grip and attached it right below the threads of the assembly (just above where the water line attaches to the assembly). <S> It's machined there to accept a wrench and the vice grip secures perfectly. <S> I took my ball pain hammer and tapped the nut area all around to hopefully break the seal. <S> I attached a 5/8" socket and ratchet wrench to the cartridge top nut (You do not have to take off that cotter pin). <S> I then placed the valve assembly on the garage floor with the vice grip attached. <S> I then secured the 5/8" socket to the top nut and used one foot to make sure the valve set doesn't move and used my other foot to apply leverage to the socket wrench and with a few stomps on the ratchet handle the nut loosened and the cartridge came out of the assembly. <A> Mine is a centerset type bar sink faucet that had been in place for about 22 years. <S> The cartridge nuts are recessed into the base, so not accessible except with a socket wrench. <S> I didn't have a deep socket <S> so I tried a spark plug wrench. <S> It fit. <S> The first try was not successful, so I soaked the treads with WD40 for a few minutes. <S> Then I attached the spark plug wrench and tapped the top end a few times with a hammer. <S> After that the threads released with moderate force. <A> It is not reverse thread, and if it hasn't budged you just need to crank on it more -- don't worry about the retaining clip, it doesn't need to come off. <S> You can try rapping on it with a hammer (not too hard) to break it loose also. <S> It is possible that you have to remove the entire valve assembly from the faucet first, because even when you crack it loose that cartridge might not come out of the top like you are planning; it might make your job easier as well. <S> You could also opt to get a new valve assembly if you really can't budge that cartridge. <S> Edit: Here's a vid to give you an idea of what you are going for: youtube video <A> You should stop using your pliers to try and remove it as it looks like you've made things worse with that approach. <S> Get a deep socket in precisely the correct size for this nut. <S> If that doesn't fit anymore you may want to try some seriously tight vise-grips. <A> I have Kohler bathroom faucets with separate handles, and the only way I was able to remove the cold cartridge, was to remove the cold water valve assembly. <S> Kohler GP77005-RP Hot Ceramic Cartridge <S> |Kohler <S> GP77006-RP Cold Ceramic Cartridge <S> I removed all the tubing, handle, chrome, nut, washers, until I had just the valve assembly with the cartridge at one end. <S> I took a roll of masking tape and wrapped the valve body threads several times. <S> I found my ratchet wrench with a 5/8" spark plug socket (or deep socket will work too) and took these tools and the valve to Home Depot. <S> In the plumbing department, I found a 2 foot pipe wrench and a 2 foot section of steel pipe. <S> This rather large pipe wrench goes around the valve body, (masking tape protects the threads), and I put my socket over the cartridge and the piece of pipe over the ratchet handle. <S> Then it's just a matter of applying enough force to remove the cartridge from the valve body. <S> I have had to replace my cold water cartridges several times, due to all the Kohler faucets in my place, and it has worked every time for me. <S> Thanks to Home Depot for letting me borrow their stuff. <S> (Even though they were unaware, lol) <S> Alternately, you can buy the complete valve assembly as a part, but it will have half the flow rate of the pre-2010 Kohler valves. <S> (And costs 3x more) Kohler 1131482 <S> Cold Ultraglide Complete Valve Assembly Kohler 1131481 <S> Hot Ultraglide Complete Valve Assembly <S> I got the cartridge off Amazon, since Home Depot doesn't sell Kohler parts. <S> I have yet to replace a Hot cartridge, it seems only the cold ones leak at my place <A> I have replaced a few of these but run into the same issue. <S> Each time I had to dismantle the whole thing, drench the assembly in liquid wrench, put it in a vice grip, use a closed box wrench with leverage and they come out. <A> An electric impact wrench worked wonders for me!!
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I would use a channel-lock wrench for this but a small pipe wrench will make the job a bit easier only because you won't have to squeeze the wrench while turning.
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How do safety labels on light fittings work with energy saving bulbs? My lamp says "Max 40W or Energy Saving 8W". I have a halogen bulb which says "28W = 36W". Is it safe to use with the lamp? Why / why not? (Sorry if the answer is easily available on the web - I did search before posting here!) <Q> The safety concern is about heat, not light. <S> For the safety label concern, you can put 40 actual watts of whatever you want in there. <S> But the real world is a bit more complex. <S> Incandescent and halogen will run hot with little fuss. <S> CFL's and <S> even more so LED's have electronics that degrade under heat, and LEDs loose efficiency with heat. <S> This is why both perform quite poorly in can lights and enclosed fixtures. <S> All that said your 28W halogen in a 40W fixture is just fine. <S> I'd stick to a 18W or less CFL or LED for operation heat (not safety heat) reasons. <A> I would think that you should be OK. <S> As far as I understand, energy-saving bulbs are either CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) or LEDs (light-emitting diodes). <S> A halogen bulb is still an incandescent bulb, but the materials it is built with are different. <S> Your halogen bulb's label indicates that it consumes 28W to produce the light output of an average incandescent bulb that consumes 36W, hence saves power. <S> But it isn't an energy-efficient bulb when compared with other available types, such as CFLs or LEDs. <A> Yes. <S> Because the 28w it will use is below the 40w rating for the lamp. <S> Johnny: I think the light manufacturer is saying: You can use a 40w incandescent or an 8w CFL since both give the same lumens of light . <S> I think it is unintentionally confusing though because one may think that the maximum CFL wattage allowed is 8w, when any CFL up to 40w would be okay.
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You're using a 28W appliance in a 40W fitting, which is within recommended specifications.
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Do I need an egress window in a basement room not used as a bedroom? Do I need an egress window in a basement family room when the basement has two viable exits? There are garage doors on one end and an exterior person door leading to exterior stairs on the other. <Q> As long as one of the "viable exits" meets the standards for an emergency escape and rescue opening, then you should be all set. <S> International Residential Code 2012 <S> Chapter 3 - Building Planning Section R310 - Emergency Escape and Rescue Openings <S> R310.1 Emergency escape and rescue required. <S> Basements, habitable attics and every sleeping room shall have at least one operable emergency escape and rescue opening. <S> Where emergency escape and rescue openings are provided they shall have a sill height of not more than 44 inches (1118 mm) measured from the finished floor to the bottom of the clear opening. <S> Where a door opening having a threshold below the adjacent ground elevation serves as an emergency escape and rescue opening and is provided with a bulkhead enclosure, the bulkhead enclosure shall comply with Section R310.3. <S> The net clear opening dimensions required by this section shall be obtained by the normal operation of the emergency escape and rescue opening from the inside. <S> Emergency escape and rescue openings with a finished sill height below the adjacent ground elevation shall be provided with a window well in accordance with Section R310.2. <S> Emergency escape and rescue openings shall open directly into a public way, or to a yard or court that opens to a public way. <S> R310.1.1 Minimum opening area. <S> All emergency escape and rescue openings shall have a minimum net clear opening of 5.7 square feet (0.530 m2). <S> R310.1.2 Minimum opening height. <S> The minimum net clear opening height shall be 24 inches (610 mm). <S> R310.1.3 Minimum opening width. <S> R310.1.4 Operational constraints. <S> Emergency escape and rescue openings shall be operational from the inside of the room without the use of keys, tools or special knowledge. <A> Typically, the code for a basement bedroom is that you need two exits. <S> But since it's not a bedroom, I don't think you have even that issue. <S> You are probably good to go. <S> But check with your local code folks. <A> Egress windows are needed as an alternative in case fire is blocking the path that the bedroom door would allow. <S> This is only required of bedrooms in basements. <S> I have a copy of the ICC 2012 residential building code in Adobe PDF, I cant get the section of the page up since it is PDF <S> , I can get it as an .XPS, that doesn't help either. <S> It does refer to doors being accepted as a rescue opening as long as it goes to a yard or public space.
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Where basements contain one or more sleeping rooms, emergency egress and rescue openings shall be required in each sleeping room. The minimum net clear opening width shall be 20 inches (508 mm). Depends on where you live and what your local code and code inspectors say. Since you have 2 walkable paths, you are covered.
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Why does this switch throw the breaker when turned on? I volunteered to help a friend with an electrical problem she was having - two of the receptacles in her bedroom did not work. All the receptacles that I looked at had two black wires and two white wires, which I interpret as they are all in the middle of a run. The wires in all the receptacles used the "push-in" connections rather than screw-down connections, and some had come loose. I replaced one of the receptacles as the push-in connectors didn't seem to grab any more. At this point, the receptacles still didn't work. Next I went to a working receptacle in the bedroom and found the same problem, with evidence of arcing on one of the black wires. I replaced this receptacle and, Ta-Dah!, all receptacles in the bedroom worked. Now comes the problem. There is also a switch on the wall that always appeared to do nothing. I was assuming that the switch controlled one/both of the non-working receptacles, but after my fix all the receptacles worked while the switch was in the off position. Plus, when the door is opened, the switch is behind the door; if it was intended to turn on a room light (there is no ceiling fixture), then it should probably be on the other side of the door. Finally, when I turn the switch on, the circuit breaker trips. This is the same circuit breaker that controls the outlets in the room. The light switch is single-pole, and appears to be the end of a switch loop - the black wire goes to one side of the switch, and the white wire goes to the other side of the switch. The only other wire in that box is the ground, which is attached to the box itself. Maybe there used to be a light fixture, and it was wire-nutted together and plastered over? How can I trace the wires through the walls? I suppose I could simply disconnect and wire-nut (separately) the offending wires in the light switch, but I'd like to get it all set up correctly. <Q> Either they provide a separate loop to control just one half of the outlet (some switched outlets are like that: a switch just controls one of the receptacles out of the pair). <S> Or else the extra wires are meant to be in series with the outlet, going out to the switch. <S> It sounds as if you miswired it so that the switch hookup is in parallel with a receptacle's hot and neutral (thinking that it's a daisy chain connection to the next outlet). <S> When you do that, guess what happens. <S> Everything works when the switch is open, and when you close it, it short circuits. <S> A half-switched outlet, if that's what your friend has, normally requires three connections (not including ground). <S> Two wires will come from the breaker, and two from the switch giving you four. <S> This means two of them get connected together. <S> How this happens is that the switch receives hot, and so it screwed to the same terminal as hot, or otherwise spliced to hot. <S> The return wire from the switch feeds the secondary hot that controls the switched part of the receptacle. <S> The best way to proceed here is to turn the power off at the breaker and verify continuities: in particular, which pair of wires corresponds to the switch. <S> With the power on, you should also check that you haven't wired any outlet with the opposite polarity: neutral being hot and vice versa. <A> As for tracing the wires through the walls, you can (circuit breaker off, of course) disconnect the wire at the switch, and disconnect a wire at an outlet, and see if there's continuity with the meter/tester of your choice (and some extension wire for the leads, in most cases.) <S> Tedious, but it will sort out pretty quickly. <S> There is a device (toner is the generic term, Fox and Hound is one brand, I think, in the echoing cavern that passes for memory) that will put a signal on a wire (the Fox) and the signal can be detected by the other part of the tool (the Hound.) <S> Overkill for most home work, but handy if you have it, or for more extensive work. <S> I seem to recall that there are some practical limitations (ie, it may not work as well as it's advertising would lead you to think in real life.) <A> My guess is that the outlets were originally intended to be split; the bottom has one circuit that is always on, and the top is switched by the wall switch (or vice versa). <S> For this to work, there is a metal tab on the hot (black) side of the outlet that connects the top and bottom outlets together that has to be broken off. <S> It's really common for people to not do this, and they end up with an unswitched outlet. <S> So, that's the first thing to look at. <S> If you have the old outlet, I bet you'll see that tab being broken. <S> As for the switch tripping the breaker, I think the switch is just wired incorrectly, and is switching to neutral rather than to hot.
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If your hypothesis is correct, which it most likely is, that the switch controls one of the outlets, then the extra pair of wires in that outlet have to do with the switch.
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How is the alternating current in your home a complete circuit? Here's what I'm asking: if the electricity flows from the hot wire to device X, then to the neutral wire which ultimately carries the signal to ground/earth at the panel then how does electricity "get back to" hot? Like, what "bridges the gap" between ground at the end of the circuit and hot at the beginning of the circuit? <Q> The gap is bridged by the power company driving the current through your wires. <S> So the current itself recirculates at the transformer near your house, and that current is driven by current in the transformer's primary coils. <S> If all is working properly (and nominally), there is no current to earth. <S> That connection is there only to guarantee that each loop—including your house current loop—never has a potential voltage to ground greater than 120 volts. <S> If a loop were not grounded, that portion could conceivably float to any voltage through static effects or other processes. <A> (USA system, single phase) <S> The transformer at your pole (or on the ground if you have underground power feed) provides 240VAC with a center tap. <S> Three wires run to your house - L1, N, L2 (or hot neutral, hot, if you like.) <S> 240 V loads have a complete circuit from L1 to the load returning through L2 <S> 120V loads have a complete circuit from L1 or L2, returning through Neutral. <S> If multiple 120V loads are running from L1 and L2, the neutral current is reduced, as the two 120V loads are a 240V load to the extent of the lesser current (the remaining current from the higher current load returns through Neutral.) <S> Tying neutral to ground, in the USA, is done at the service entrance to the house - some in meter box, some in main circuit breaker panel. <S> No service current flows through the ground. <S> It flows through the neutral wire, back to the service transformer. <A> The neutral wire does not carry the signal to ground/earth at the panel. <S> It carries it to the neutral wire from the utility company's transformer. <S> This wire bridges the gap back to the hot at the transformer. <S> The ground connections are for safety.
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You can think of it as a remote generator pushing the current through your house, but in actuality there are several transformers isolating the current between generation and your house.
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Can the blanket Insulation in my basement be left in place when refinishing? I'm thinking about finishing my basement. It currently has the blanket insulation that the builder installed when we built the house last year. I'm unfamiliar with this product. Is it meant to be used behind my framing or should I take it out and use something else. I would love to use it since I already have it. <Q> When I finish basements for my clients, they always ask my opinion. <S> Here it is: I don't like spending money twice. <S> If there is already insulation on the wall the meets the code requirement, then we'll frame right to in and leave it in place. <S> The white vinyl insulating blanket usually has an R value of 10. <S> In Colorado where I live and work, that's the code requirement. <S> You won't see a lot of thermal benefit from upgrading the insulation to a R-13 or R-19. <S> To me it's not worth the cost of removing and replacing. <S> (not to mention the disposal of the blanket - it takes up a ton of dumpster space!) <S> That said it would be easy to add batt insulation in addition to the current insulation after you frame the walls. <S> One note: <S> you do not want to compress the vinyl blanket with the wood framing or you'll reduce the effectiveness. <S> If you do compress it, take a knife blade and run it down both sides of each stud and it will allow the insulation to expand into the stud cavity. <S> Your main source of heat loss in the basement is going to be around the windows. <S> Take the time to seal the windows well. <S> Hope that helps! <A> Yes you can <S> but it can be the only layer, and I would draw concern with the R value the blanket has. <S> It may at best only have an R value of 5, maybe more, and perhaps that is enough. <S> For reference, foam board on the average has a R value of 5.5 per inch <S> If your basement has a bit of exposure above the outside grade, and you get really cold winters, I would truly consider upgrading your insulation. <S> Insulate the whole wall too if not already done. <S> Some codes may allow only the top of the wall needing insulation, down to 2 ft. below grade. <S> Basement walls conduct the cold very well and an exposed part of the wall will still radiate the cold The link that DAO1 has, uses good procedures for a basement install, and as he cautions, do not layer insulation with vapor barriers, there can only be one toward the heated side, an additional vapor barrier will trap moisture and cause problems. <A> I've installed basement blanket in 5000 homes in the past 20 years. <S> The fact is that basements need a Tyvek or Typar layer installed prior to the Blanket insulation. <S> Any other then that and you're taking a chance of major moisture problems in your basement along with that damp smell that most basements have. <S> If it were my basement I would: <S> Remove all blanket and insulate in joist pockets <S> Use can foam spray and pipes ducts vents leading to the outside; spray any gaps between sill plate and foundation any tie downs Tyvek all exterior walls with Tyvek / Typar Frame walls 1 inch off foundation walls Insulate with R22 Roxul <S> Put R44 in joist pockets <S> Caulk top plate, bottom plate, corners and every double stud <S> (this is a crucial step) <S> Apply Vapour barrier <A> If I was finishing a basement these days, I'd pull out the current insulation and have somebody come in to shoot a few inches of foam. <S> That gives a nice monolithic insulation blanket. <S> The best reference <S> I know on these sort of things is BuildingScience.com <S> They do lots of research and have great articles on how to do things right. <A> After 2 years we had mold behind the blanket on our North wall that is above grade.
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If the exterior of the foundation has the black waterproofing membrane, you're fine to build your framed wall right up to the vinyl blanket insulation in the basement.
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Is it possible to reuse a copper pipe's compression fitting? I removed what I didn't realize was a compression fitting on a copper pipe for my kitchen cold water supply. Is it possible to reuse the compression fitting or do I need to buy a new one to replace it? It looks like it's some kind of plastic. It took a tremendous amount of force to loosen, and a fairly cursory attempt at re-tightening resulted in a leak. Also, I assume I should wrap everything in teflon tape when replacing the connectors? <Q> If it hasn't been tightened many times, it should be okay to reuse. <S> Clean off the mating faces thoroughly and don't use tape, putty, or anything else. <S> And don't be gentle tightening: <S> The seal is formed by forcing the surfaces together and "bending" them to mate. <S> Even with threaded steel pipes, it can take a day or two for the tightened fittings to form a good seal and they can drip at first. <S> The essential observation is whether the drip rate slows hour by hour—if it does, it is probably okay and going to seal. <S> If it doesn't drip more slowly, try tightening a little more with water pressure applied until two consecutive small turns (1/8 turn) doesn't immediately decrease the drip rate. <A> I would be cautious reusing this. <S> Reason being if the surface has a slight indentation from the previous seat from the prior install, and the shape of that end is kind of half spherical, which allows the mating surfaces to change locations depending on the angle to pipe approaches its counterpart. <S> If the surface is not marred from the prior install though, it is safe to use. <S> Perhaps even a slight mar may be reformed when tightened, worth a shot to me if that is the case. <S> Do clean it and inspect it first, apply pipe dope if you choose, not teflon tape <A> Had super short copper stubs and no shut off valves under bathroom sink. <S> To add the compression shut off valves <S> I cleaned the ferrule ring and wrapped it several times with Teflon tape. <S> I tightened very tight and that worked for me - no leaks. <S> Just passing it on. <S> Not an expert or plumber so very grateful for these posts. <S> Good luck all~~~ <A> I'm going to directly contradict the other answers. <S> As stated in "See Jane Drill episode on " When to Use PFTE Tape, Pipe Dope or Neither <S> " (see 6:06 onward), warping your ferrule with some plumbers tape is the preffered way to reuse a ferrule you can't remove. <S> That said, the preferred thing do to <S> is remove the ferrule if you can. <S> If I were in your situation, I'd cut and replace with a 'push fit' hose + fitting combo (if your valve needs to be replaced your hose should be too, <S> so you might as well buy them as a combo) as they are easy to remove later.
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As others have stated, the ferrule is usually scored during the initial fitting and that scoring will likely make it leak during reuse, the teflon tape workes by filling the fills the scored area of the ferrule.
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Why is my emergency generator hard to pull for starting? My portable generator ran fine for 5 hours, then ran out of gas. I refilled the tank but now the pull is excessively hard and the unit will not start. I removed the spark plug and the pull was normal. What next? <Q> Mine is doing the same. <S> I fully disassembled after checking the easy stuff. <S> The decompression lobe on the cam is no longer functioning. <S> Mine needs a cam. <A> Mine is hard to pull even without spark plug <S> and I took the thing apart and <S> when I disconnected a plug that leads to the electrical parts it was easy to pull <S> so I plugged back in to see if it was the reason <S> and it was cause <S> when it's not plugged it it turns fine <S> but when I plug that back in it's hard again. <S> I'm assuming there's a clutch of some sort that engages when it starts but is malfunctioning. <S> I'm assuming it's supposed to disengage when stopped and engage after the engine starts <A> That's why some chainsaws have a push button on the cylinder-head to relieve pressure in the cylinder, which makes it that much easier to start them. <S> (otherwise with each pull the compression gets worse and therefore the pulling gets a lot more difficult) <A> I have come across this problem on Multiquip generator/welder combo. <S> After talking to a representative from the company and doing some electrical diagnosis, the problem was the transistor PTR. <S> If I removed the generator section from the engine, the engine started right up. <S> I put it back and it feels like someone is holding the output shaft, lots of resistance in pulling and could not start it. <S> After the new part was put in, it started right up. <S> Hope this helps some of you. <S> The part was very expensive by the way, I think it was either $400 or $600.
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Could have been a compression problem which got worse because there was no ignition. The tech said it creates something along the lines of a "electromagnetic gate" the resistance in pulling starting is created from parts of the generator acting like a magnet.
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How can I solder/braze thin stainless steel wire? I've been attempting to practice torch brazing/soldering and am currently attempting to join a ring of stainless steel wire shut like a wrist sized 'o'. Unfortunately the results have been pretty bad. The silver solder I'm using just does not want to stick, it keeps dripping off in globs. And when I heat the wire up it gets red hot pretty quick and then as soon as it cools down its coated in a layer of char which makes it not want to stick even further. I've tried using this propane torch and this MAPP torch but neither seem to get the job done and seem to heat it to rapidly. I combat this by pulling it back a bunch and 'wafting' the heat over the target area which seems to help but things still go black. Furthermore I'm using this silver bearing solder and this flux paste which I suspect are more likely the issue. The solder is considerably thicker than the wire I'm trying to join and I'm not even 100% sure its the right kind for the job. The wire I'm using is stainless steel (type 302/304), soft tempered and is 0.032" diameter. I've come across a few tutorials on youtube but most seem to be for copper plumbing pipe work or a few seem to be jewellery (and using exotic metals). Can anyone suggest good tutorials to learn how to do this type of brazing/soldering? Does anyone have any suggestions around where I'm going wrong? Edit: In case it is somehow relevant, this is a high voltage electrical project and I'll be linking several of these 'o' rings in a sphere shape. Its not a simple matter to bolt them together and I must weld them. <Q> Successful soldering (you're not welding, and you have the wrong torch if you want to weld) requires that the work be physically clean (scrub it) and chemically clean (flux) <S> - you need a very aggressive flux for stainless, because the reason it IS "stainless" is that it forms a strong oxide layer which protects it from most corrosion. <S> Kester is not going to regard stainless as electrical work, for one thing, so don't bark up that tree too long. <S> With thin stainless, the other problem you almost certainly have (stainless conducts heat poorly, which makes it very easy to overheat) is overheating the work - once work has been overheated, you have to return to physically cleaning it and refluxing before you have a hope in heck of getting solder on it. <S> You also need to stay out of the "oxidizing cone" of the torch flame - ideally, switch to an oxy-acetlyene torch, make the flame rich, and only use the feather - <S> but you can get there with propane if you're careful. <S> The thickness of the solder does not matter much - you heat the wires, and melt the solder on the wires - don't heat the solder. <S> You could also move up to brazing, which is a process similar to soldering but at higher temperatures, using different filler metals. <S> When most folks refer to silver soldering, what they actually mean is silver brazing (the rod has some silver, but not a huge amount.) <S> The solder you linked to is a low-temperature solder that has silver in it, from the "lead free" change in "soft solders." <S> What this is doing on a DIY home improvement site is another question. <S> High voltage electrical projects are not exactly the bread and butter of DIY. <S> Another approach in a lab setting would be to do the whole job in a glovebox full of nitrogen or argon. <S> You could also TIG weld it, if you were good at TIG welding. <A> There is a flux for soldering steel and stainless steel called alumsolder chrome flux. <S> I have tried this flux and I was very surprised with the results. <S> I needed to join some steel connectors to the copper wire. <S> There is a tutorial movie on youtube <S> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbFPwnyHkkM <S> If you still need to solder steel just have a look at http://alumsolder.co.uk <S> The only thing is to remember about the size of the material.. <S> Soldering iron will not heat up large elements. <S> Good luck. <A> For electrical applications you should just bolt it, or use a surface that has been plated with copper or nickel so that electronically conductive flux can stick to it. <S> If this is strictly a mechanical application, you need a flux designed for stainless steel: http://www.kester.com/kester-content/uploads/2013/06/Soldering_to_Stainless_Steel.pdf
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Spot welding might be another approach, but that will also work better on stainless in an oxygen-free atmosphere (glovebox, etc.)
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Why would my TV turn off/on when connected to a surge suppressor? I have a very strange problem which may or may not be the TV. The TV is plugged in to a surge suppressor with the rest of my home theater. Satellite box is also plugged in to the suppressor, including the coaxial input/output, so my system "should" be completely isolated and protected from any spikes. Here's the problem: I have two lamps plugged into two separate outlets in the room, which makes a total of three being used (including my home theater). When I touch one of the lamps, "sometimes" the TV will very briefly lose the picture for a second or so, then comes right back on. I cannot always recreate this, as sometimes it happens, sometimes not. I've also had it occur when getting up from my sofa. The TV is on a wooden stand, and the floor is carpeted. Is it possible I have "dirty power" running in the room? I took a look on Wikipedia, and read up a little on Power Conditioners. Should I invest in one, or is it likely something else? I'm no electrical engineer, so if anyone knows what may be the cause, I'd appreciate your input. <Q> Every cable/satellite installer I've ever talked to says " Do Not connect the cable line to a surge suppressor. <S> " I'm not sure how exactly these devices are designed, but for some reason they tend to degrade, interrupt, and/or interfere with the signal. <S> NOTE: <S> I am not a cable/satellite installer <S> , I'm just some guy on the internet. <S> I will not be held liable and/or responsible for any damage caused by my advice. <S> Proceed at your own risk. <A> Invest in a new surge suppressor. <S> Don't invest in a power filter: you don't need it, it won't help. <S> If you call for service on the TV they may require you take it off the surge protector: the protectors are so troublesome. <S> Your surge protector does nothing at all to protect against power line noise: it's not designed for that. <S> It may be of some use protecting against a residual lighting strike, when combined with a strong whole house SPD (surge protective device). <S> Plug the TV directly into the wall, and remove the coax connector, to see if the behavior changes. <S> Also figure out if the signal is lost for a second, or the power is lost for a second. <S> Does the TV act like you unplugged the Cable/Antenna, or like you pulled out the plug? <A> My guess... <S> Sounds like improperly grounded outlets or other wiring issue. <S> If your outlets have 3 prongs (1 for ground) get one of those plug in outlet testers. <S> They can tell you if the outlet wires are correct. <S> It's a little three prong device that fits in the outlet like a regular plug and has 3 LEDs that indicate what the problem might be. <S> You can also check if you have a multimeter <S> but it's more complicated and slower. <S> They testers are cheap enough and very nice to have. <S> Get one that also tests GFCI outlets <S> so you have everything covered. <S> If you're outlets are the old 2 prong and you're using an adapter on the surge supressor <S> then it should be one of the ones that has a wire that screws into the center screw of the outlet cover. <S> Provided the box is properly grounded that is. <S> That you'll need to check with a multi meter.
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The first thing I would try in this situation, is to disconnect the cable from the surge suppressor and connect it using a simple coaxial cable connector.
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Why do my LED Christmas lights glow when plugged into a light fixture via an adapter? I have an outside light that is controlled by a light switch inside. I took the light out and put a adapter to plug in an extension cord to run LED Christmas lights. When I turn the switch off, just the first strand of lights glows very faintly so I wonder is my switch used as the ground and the lights are finding ground at the tree they are hung at. <Q> If the switch is a dimmer, remote operated switch, or a switch with a neon backlight, it may allow a small amount of leakage power even when off. <S> It's not enough power to light an incandescent light, but it may be enough to dimly light led lights. <A> Try running an extension cord over to a standard outlet and troubleshoot your lights in that configuration before you bring the adapter and switch into the picture. <S> You can also separately test the switch and adapter by plugging in a standard incandescent shop light. <S> The key is to isolate and remove as many variables as possible from the problem. <A> I have the same situation. <S> I noticed that some LED strands when unplugged from the wall altogether still glow faintly for a minute. <S> So I don't think its a leakage as much as power still in the power cords, probably 100ft or more when you add it all together <S> and it just takes a while to dissipate. <S> Even if it was a leakage <S> it's so minute it would be negligible. <S> Maybe .01 of a watt. <S> If you had a multimeter you might be able to see it, maybe not.
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When I turn my Christmas lights off outside by an outdoor multi plug switch they glow very faintly.
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What is the standard distance a closet rod should be from the back wall? Is there a standard distance that a closet rod should be from the back wall of the closet? Is there also a minimum? If so, will all standard closet rod brackets conform to this depth? <Q> As far as I know, there is no "standard" for this. <S> I've looked for them. <S> The only standards have to do with the actual closet dimensions that are specified in building codes. <S> People typically put the closet rods in the middle of the closet. <S> Minimum closet depth is 24" so that puts the closet rod at 12" too. <S> Certain types of clothing tend to extend past the edge of the hanger. <S> The sleeves of jackets and dress shirts for example. <S> So you want to have room for them. <S> Good air circulation is also important to minimize chances of mold and mildew. <S> Especially important if the back wall of the closet is an exterior wall. <A> The standard is 67" up to the top of a 1X4 ledger and 12" from drywall for single hanging. <S> the centerline of the closet pole cup is typically is 2" from the top of the ledger, it can be lower, then the ledger needs to be wider to accommodate. <S> That puts the shelf at 67 3/4" to the top. <S> The 11 1/4" shelf will give the room needed to get the hanger on. <S> This is what I learned 40 years ago from my then 60 year old mentor. <S> But there is nobody waiting with a hammer, if is varies. <S> My mentor would have waited though. <S> If the closet is shallower than 24" you can reduce it to the center of the closet as close as 10" as Testor101 suggests. <S> The dimension to the back of the door give a little room for this to work if need be. <S> For double hanging to keep clothing from dragging severely over the lower setting and on the floor, 42" and 84", I learned this from my own closet at home. <S> If it is a child's room these can be varied too, say down to 40" and 80". <S> When planning how it will go together, have your center support bracket on hand that you plan to use. <S> Some manufacturers make the seat that the pole sets in different heights. <S> I have seen brackets that are only have 1 1/2" to the center of the pole as opposed to the one in the illustration above that shows 2 5/8" more or less. <S> The former will need a 1X backer at the top were the latter will not. <S> Most center brackets are gauged to use a 1X on the wall to get the back of the bracket in the same plane as the ledger. <S> To determine whether you need center support or not, for me, is a rule of thumb that I picked up over time. <S> Any span that is over 4' for wood poles, it can be longer if you know it will not be loaded fully, 5' for metal, with the same exception as wood. <A> Half a hanger + the thickness of the clothes would be your minimum, but the vast majority are 12"/300mm, and most but possibly not all brackets are that size. <A> 10 inches (254 mm) to the center of the rod, minimum. <S> The widest hangers I know about are 18.5", so half of that is 9.25" plus 3/4" wiggle room. <S> Though some hanger rod brackets are ~12" (304.8 mm) to the center of the rod.
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A common convention is 12" from the back wall to the center of the rod.
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how to remove a tiny screw that won't spin? A friend asked me to have at a look at his 'broken' laptop and here's a picture of one of the screws. Click for larger view I've been trying to remove it for about 15 minutes. It's in a 'hole' of 2~3mm deep and surrounded by the black plastic part Any helpful ideas ? <Q> First, you need the right sized screwdriver bit - this is already looking chewed up as though it's met not quite the right size. <S> This is one area where getting the non-Chinese product may pay off in the long run (they not only work better, they also destroy less things you work on, so between not having to throw out and replace the tools and not having things you work on damaged, the more expensive tool may cost less overall.) <S> Second, you need plenty of force pushing down on the screwdriver so it won't pop up. <S> A standard "jewelers screwdriver" has a rotating button on the top <S> so you can push down while turning. <S> You'd need some adapters to get down to the correct bit size, but a hand impact driver is the tool of choice for truly stuck <S> cross-head screws - preferably with the right bit - be it Phillips, Pozi-Drive, JIS or some other variant on <S> the <S> + screw head (they are different, in ways that matter) in the right size. <S> You torque the body in the direction you are trying to turn to set it, then smack the back end with a hammer, which drives it in and turns it at the same time. <S> It's rare to need to go that far on a laptop, though, and you could cause additional damage if the computer is not well supported. <S> Third option would be to accept that the screw is stuck <S> and it's not your laptop, and suggest that the friend take it in to a service tech (sometimes discretion <S> IS the better part of valor.) <S> Fourth, you could (with some damage to the black plastic part) cut a slot in the screw. <S> Messy and complicated (can't let the grinding dust go everywhere, access is poor, etc.) <S> but it gets you more leverage (wide screw-head, small + type driver - can use a wider straight-blade on it once slot is cut.) <S> But look very hard at the third option before going there. <A> An easy-out would do the job, it's a bit of an overkill. <S> Have you tried taking a small screw driver (flathead, it will have to be smaller than the hole) and jamming it into to the broken plastic screw and trying to get it to back out? <A> There are "screw extractor bits" that are made for this purpose <S> but I'm not sure they make them as small as you might need. <S> You can also try placing a thick rubber band, latex glove or dental dam between the screwdriver tip and the screw. <S> A drop of super glue or epoxy on the tip of the screwdriver is something I thought of once <S> but never got to try it. <A> This might just about push the screw up to remove it. <S> Or, you can push the screw up with an awl or flathead screwdriver, and grab whatever protrudes with a pair of needle-nose pliers and then either screw or pull out. <S> All of this is, of course, not knowing the material that the screw grabs on to.
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It looks like you should be able to use a small flathead screwdriver (or an awl, or any flat bit of metal, really) to push up on the plastic surround while unscrewing the screw. If it's plastic, you might as well not attempt to reinstall it later (specially if it's already turning freely).
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Would a failing igniter cause my furnace to blow cold air? I noticed tonight my furnace was firing up, but not actually blowing out heat. I turned the thermostat down so it was no longer triggering it, let it sit for a couple of minutes, and then turned it back up: it ran fine and started blowing warm air. This lasted for an hour, maybe two, then it happened again. Is the igniter going bad? <Q> Could be. <S> Could also be the flame sensor not working ( <S> if the control system can't tell that the furnace is lit, it will assume it's not and turn the fuel off.) <S> Could be a nozzle clog (since you didn't specify your fuel - that's more of an oil than a gas problem.) <S> Unless you really know your way around them (and quite often even then) it's often a good idea to have a pro in to deal with fuel heating appliances - they have knowledge of the systems, and esoteric tools that don't make sense for a homeowner to purchase, such as the exhaust gas analyzer that allows adjusting the fuel/air mixture for best efficiency. <A> Probably not, but it depends entirely on the make and model furnace. <S> In most furnaces the blower will only come on, if a flame has been sensed. <S> Once a flame has been detected, either a timer, or another sensor tells the blower when to turn on. <S> If the blower is on when there is not flame (other than a bit after the flame has gone off), there may be a problem with the high limit switch, or the furnace may be overheated. <S> Contacting a local, reputable HVAC technician is likely the best course of action. <A> Yes, a faulty igniter can cause the symptoms you mentioned, depending on the particular unit you are dealing with. <S> there are many other possibilities as well. <S> Best to have a technician out if you aren't familiar with troubleshooting equipment.
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Could be an issue with a power vent, or a power vent sensor (again, since no details provided, may or may not apply to your furnace.)
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How can I waterproof walls that are not shower or basement walls? Have a room, ~10x10 that I want walls to be waterproofed and durable. This room will have parrots in cages. Cages will be periodically hosed off (have concrete floors, floor drain). There wont be intense water on the walls every day, like a shower, but there will be times it will be sprayed. Durable is because if they get out, they will destroy! : ) Have contemplated hardi-plank (or comparable), Durock, tile. I think tile could work well but the expense!!! Currently walls are framed. This room will be climate controlled. Maybe someone has other ideas? <Q> Remember that concrete is porous so even if you have a floor drain some of the moisture will seep into the concrete. <S> Maybe even an elastomeric membrane you paint on before applying tile on concrete slab floors. <S> RedGuard is one type of product. <S> Your best solution would be to build the entire room like a shower like you mentioned. <S> Moisture barrier on walls that extends a few inches on the floor and is sealed to it. <S> Cement board or hardibacker covered in tiles. <S> If you look around you can find cheap tiles. <S> There are tiles stores around me in industrial areas that advertise $1/sq ft tiles. <S> Home Depot has a 4x4" tile going for $0.16 each. <S> If the tiles are too much money... <S> If appearance isn't a concern maybe you can just paint over cementboard walls with the elastometric membrane? <S> Also Quikrete has a waterproof cement product called QuickWall Surface Bonding Cement . <S> It's main purpose was to parge over dry stacked concrete block walls <S> but it's also used for cisterns. <S> You spread it on with a trowel like stucco 1/8" thick. <S> At 50 sq ft per bag it comes out to about $0.32/sqft. <S> I've used it <S> and it really is waterproof. <S> I painted over it with DryLock waterproof paint for a nicer finish. <S> and I wanted a smoother surface on the wall. <S> You could probably just use a regular, mildew resistant, glossy paint instead. <S> Call Quikrete and see what they have to say because it's been a while since I used it. <S> You'll want to let it cure a bit before <S> I mixed it up <S> I think 1/2 bag at a time in a 5 gallon bucket with their acrylic fortifier using a drill and paddle mixer. <S> Spread it on using a cement trowel. <A> There are hard plastic sheets for covering walls - often seen in commercial food preparation areas (easy to clean.) <S> Similar in format to "tileboard" but solid plastic all the way through, <S> (tileboard is a cheesy tile substitute that's basically masonite with a fake tile surface - it might work for you too, but I would not recommend it, given the desire for durability and serious washdown.) <S> One possible approach if you can't find exactly those at a reasonable price locally would be to use good old fashioned formica (plastic laminate)- you can still easily get large sheets of that NOT already attached to a preformed countertop, even though the preformed-countertop version has dominated retail home improvement for a while. <S> It can also be extremely expensive if you become dead-set on something that you can't find a good deal on, or have someone else install it. <S> IME, the hardi or durock products are good as substrate, not so much as an easy-to-clean surface. <S> However, there are a lot of different hardi-products, so I may be thinking of a slightly different one than the exact version you are. <S> In any case, consider putting up shower liner first, since you still have the walls open. <A> This cement board only needs to cover at the minimum the first foot of wall were the floor meets the wall and wicking can occur up from the floor when the walls are sprayed. <S> The joints to the floor and between sheets are covered in fiberglas drywall tape and coated with modified thinset. <S> let it cure for a day. <S> The rest is the OSB plywood. <S> When you apply it, tape the floor to give a neat edge, for you will see this and it will look more presentable. <S> Then apply the FRP <S> (Fiberglas reinforced plastic) panels with their fasteners, and sealant applied where needed, joints screws, etc. <S> The FRP panels are not set to the floor, that will promote moisture being trapped. <S> Hold it up about 4" so it shows the Cement board, taped joints and waterproofing that has been applied over all the cement board. <S> Using 1/2" OSB will allow you to screw items that are light weight to the wall with the worry of finding a stud. <S> For a cheaper way to do it wonderboard is available in 5/16" material and use 1/4" or 3/8" plywood or OSB. <S> To hang objects you will need to find the studs for this.
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Seal the floor with a penetrating sealer or an epoxy floor paint. Tile CAN be quite reasonable IF you install it yourself and shop around. The cement board is then covered with the liquid membrane used for showers that in now available at tile stores and even Home Depot if you like red. Using the wall panels that were mentioned before that I provided the link for, place that over a layer of 1/2" OSB, from the corner of the ceiling to the top of the Durock or Wonderboard that you will apply first. I spoke with Quikrete and they said the DryLock wasn't necessary but already had it
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How do I mount a TV on a solid wood wall? I have a 51.8lb Sharp Aquos LC46D85U that I'd like to mount above my fireplace. The problem is that there aren't any studs (at least none that I can find) behind my wood walls. My walls are not wood paneling; they're solid tongue-in-groove wood (see picture). The only structure I can find behind the walls is a few horizontal bars of wood at intervals. The wood walls are nailed into these horizontal braces. The intervals are too widely spaced for me to get all mounting bracket screws into them. I could get either the top or bottom mounting screws into them, but not both. Given that the walls are wood (not just paneling), do you think they would be able to bear a 52lb TV mounted to it? If not, how should I safely mount my TV given my lack of studs? <Q> It claims it can find wood substructures 1-1/2" deep which is going to be about how deep your studs are from the front of the panels. <S> The other side of the wall is probably an exterior wall which will make this difficult but try finding the studs from that side. <S> Also electrical boxes are usually mounted on the side of studs so use them as a cue. <S> Another option, would be to try and figure out where the studs are through trial and error. <S> Measure out from one corner, factor in the depth of the panels and strapping from the side wall then over your fireplace drill a small exploratory hole near where a stud should be but not directly over the strapping. <S> Poke around with a wire bent into the shape of an L and see if you can find a stud. <S> If you can't try measuring from the opposite wall. <S> Once you find one you should be able to easily find the rest since they should be space 16" on center. <S> Just remember to get longer lag bolts. <S> Also, there are some replies in this forum thread that might be useful to you. <S> I had to mount a TV fairly high. <S> Make sure you get a mount that has tilt control to reduce neck strain. <A> If you use decent screws, you should have no problem mounting right to the surface wood, without worrying about where you are behind it. <S> It's a much more robust material than drywall, and 52 lbs is not all that heavy. <S> You could certainly line up the top bracket screws with a strap and use longer screws there, but you probably don't need to. <A> Ecenrwal is right. <S> You can even add a few more if you choose. <S> The screws that are usually provided with those kits have screws that are long enough to go through drywall then into the stud. <S> You really only need screws that are 1" long, 1 1/4" at most. <S> Yes the ergonomics aren't the best, but if you have a large screen (50" and bigger) you need to view the tv from a distance that reduces the angle to were it won't cramp your neck <S> My TV is set like that, I am 59 years old and it does not get to me at all. <S> Our sofa is 12' back, the view is great. <S> If your mantel projection is sufficient, it will protect the TV. <S> Mine is set above the woodburning fireplace, it was cranking out the heat after a couple of hours burning red oak, it was not getting the TV hot at all. <S> It is a zero clearance <S> prefab Heatolator brand I installed myself, the mantel has a 8 1/2" projection at the top, with the TV 5" above to the bottom edge and the top of the mantel is 16" above the firebox top. <S> Although everything gets really hot, yes, but there is a "wall" of cooler air entering the firebox from the room at the same top edge. <S> That makes the front of the box cooler than the front. <A> This answer is way too late - I just saw the post now. <S> One look at that <S> and I'm sure you live in Hawaii. <S> Your're right about it being tongue in groove. <S> It's probably 3/4" redwood. <S> I would NOT put screws into that. <S> I would actually bolt it on. <S> Understand that you will be able to see it clearly from the other side of the wall. <S> So it matters what's behind the wall. <S> I think the only other way is to actually build another wall in front of that one. <S> People do this <S> but it would be a lot of work and expense if your only goal is to mount a TV. <S> I'm sure you've already dealt with this. <S> I'd be really curious to find out what you did and <S> how it worked for you.
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You might want to try a Bosch GMS120 Wall Scanner instead of a regular stud finder. I agree with BMitch that there's horizontal strapping over the studs. The wood is too soft and will probably not hold. That wall is Single Wall Construction.
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What makes water condense on the interior of the windows at night when it's cold? While staying with some relatives, I noticed that all their windows experience terrible interior condensation at night and am wondering about what they can do to prevent it. The house is kept to 70 degrees with gas-powered hot water baseboard heaters, and the windows are vinyl double-paned units. The house is 2x4 frame construction with interior drywall, exterior stucco, and I'm being told that the walls are uninsulated(!!!). They live in a colder part of the high desert southwest where the humidity is very low during the day but rises at night, and where the temperature gets down into the single digits at night during the winter. During this season, the interior of their windows become entirely covered with condensation at around 8 or 9 PM every night without fail. It's kinda weird. What's causing this, and what can they do about it? <Q> There are two things working together to make water condense on the windows. <S> The house is humid, and the windows are cold (even well-insulated windows will usually be the coldest thing in the house because of the low R-value compared to walls and ceilings). <S> To prevent the condensation, you can remove the humidity or make the windows warmer. <S> Removing Humidity <S> You have several options for removing humidity. <S> Ventilation system Running exhaust fans in areas that produce humidity (like the bathroom while showering) will lower the overall humidity in the house. <S> Forced air heating Forced air heating systems wick moisture from the air. <S> If you have a forced air system at your house, and your relatives have radiated heat from hot-water baseboards, this may help explain why they have condensation on their windows and you do not. <S> Dehumidifier Dehumidifiers live up to their name. <S> This one claims it can remove 70 pints of water from a 1400sqft house every day. <S> That's almost 9 gallons of water taken out of the air each day. <S> Just remember to put it near a drain. <S> Making the Windows Warmer <S> The other option is to make the windows warm enough that the water does not condense. <S> Plastic <S> Placing a sheet of plastic over the inside of the windows will insulate the windows better. <S> If the plastic seals all the way around the window frame, it also prevents the humid air from reaching the window in the first place. <S> Space Heater <A> Not to be rude but just head over to wikipedia and checkout condensation, dew point etc. <S> Two things they can do: Lower their humidifier. <S> I live in CO and keep my house around 35% RH in winter with a humidifier. <S> Without a humidifier it would drop to around 15%RH. <S> Get better windows. <S> Triple pane windows are not uncommon in mountain/very cold climates. <S> I have double pane and do get some condensation if I don't lower the humidifier when it gets super cold. <S> Wood casement windows are the best insulated windows, also most expensive <S> but there are other factors. <S> BTW, you can get a humidity sensor at HD or amazon for $10. <S> Highly recommend. <A> When warm moist air comes in contact with a cold surface condensation forms. <S> Knew someone with this problem. <S> The problem they have is most likely the windows are too thin. <S> Double pane windows come with different sized gaps. <S> Lots of info on different ways condensation can form on the Wikipedia page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insulated_glazing
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If there are only a couple of windows with serious condensation issues, a space heater directed toward those windows should heat the windows enough to lessen or eliminate the condensation. Perhaps they have single pane or old windows.
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Can I sweep blown insulation to one side and replace with fiberglass batts? I noticed my attic blown in insulation is rather thin on one side. Rather than buying enough to cover the whole area, I was thinking of just pushing or brooming the blown in insulation toward the soffit to fill it to the top of the joists, and then laying some batts into the cleared space. Is there any reason I shouldn't do that? EDIT: Please note: Adding more blown in insulation is NOT an option and I wish people would quit mentioning it. I KNOW the differences. I want to know if there are any TECHNICAL REASONS why I don't want to do this ONLY! <Q> The recommendations for R-values in attics has increased . <S> Since your insulation doesn't come up to the top of the framing I'm guessing where it's not low <S> it only comes up to the top of the framing. <S> That means even if you had the insulation to the top of 2x6 joists you'd be below the new minimum recommendation. <S> You may even find someone to do it for you for less than the cost to buy batts. <S> If you're going to the trouble I think you might as well consider adding enough insulation to meet the new recommended minimum. <S> Then just add more blown in insulation. <S> You'll save a lot of time compared to sweeping the old and then spending all that time on your knees in an attic cutting and installing batts. <S> Probably save money to and get a more energy efficient attic. <S> You can rent a blower <S> and I think if you buy a certain number of bags some of the big box stores will include the blower rental for free. <S> I'm looking into blowing in insulation over my existing batts because it's going to be cheaper than adding an additional layer of rolls. <S> Update: <S> You didn't indicate the size of your attic or how many square feet you have that needs added insulation. <S> If you only have a small area to do such that renting a blower is cost prohibitive (less than 10 bags <S> so no free blower rental) or a PITA <S> you can always apply the blown in insulation without a blower. <S> It's easy to break up by hand and sprinkle it over the area then rake it smooth. <S> You can also drop chunks of the insulation into a clean, empty trash can (maybe 5 gallon bucket if you can't get trash can up in attic) and break/fluff it up with a paddle mixer on a drill then pour it out into the area. <S> Either way I look at it, adding more loose fill seems to save steps, time and money. <A> Cellulose (the typical, but not the only, blown in) is much less air-permeable than fiberglass. <S> Some tests even show it works without a vapor barrier, though I certainly put one in anyway on my project using it. <S> It also has an R-value that increases in the cold , and no seams. <S> Fibreglass batts are considerably more air-permeable, have seams, and have an R-value that reduces with cold temperatures - which is not great if insulating to reduce heating costs. <S> So: doing what you describe is both possible and better than doing nothing , but inferior to (and probably more expensive than) blowing in more cellulose. <S> If you have a near-religious objection to more blown in, by all means level out the blown-in and add fibreglass batts, rather than not adding anything. <S> If, (as seems unlikely from your comments) you'd like the best insulation job for your money, consider adding more blown in. <A> One of the problems with blown in insulation in new homes is that you have sub-contractors that just don't care whether they do it right or not. <S> About 6 years after living in our new house, I crawled back to an area over our master bathroom and master closet to find that I had only about 2 inches of insulation in many places and could almost see the drywall of the ceiling in others. <S> I gently raked out the blown insulation, one small area at a time and put in R30 batt insulation. <S> Then raked the blown insulation back over. <S> Before that I had wondered why the bathroom seemed so cold.
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Blowing insulation is usually easier and cheaper than laying batts.
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How do I prevent harmonic resonance hum in PVC vent of newly installed hot water heater? I just had a new power vented water heater installed (HTProducts Phoenix Light Duty) in our crawlspace. The contractor that put it in used part of the existing 3" concentric vent from the furnace we removed used. The issue is as the exhaust fan gets up to higher speed a loud hum starts in the vent that sounds a bit like a (albeit quiet) fog horn. This noise is nothing like the fan noise close to the water heater. It's low frequency and loud enough to annoy us in our bedroom on the second floor and most likely our neighbor. I am fairly certain the issue is to do with some kind of natural harmonic happening in the exhaust vent and this is reinforced in that if you momentarily cup your hand over the vent exhaust (blocking the air flow) the hum stops and it goes back to the quiet expected noise for maybe 10-20 seconds, sometimes longer, depending on what the fan is doing then. Has anyone come across this or have a solution? Total length of pipe isn't really an option as we can't move the water heater position though the length of where the smaller pvc pipe from the water heater exhaust joins into the 3" may be. EDIT Thanks for the suggestions. Further info: The fan is built into the water heater unit and as it is new and is controlled by the water heater cpu and I don't want to void the warranty messing with the fan is out. The manufacturer said they haven't heard of this. Based on the noise and feeling the vent pipe I think the standing wave is caused by the fan beating the air and there is minimal vibration on the vent itself. Also the hvac guy that put it in has three ninety degree angles in the 2inch pipe before it goes into the 3inch which then goes straight outside. UPDATE So after installing 3inch pvc pipe the whole way from the water heater to the concentric vent and still being puzzled at the hum the contractor started going back over everything and after adjusting the combustion mix it appears the hum was caused by too lean a mix. <Q> Change the fan speed. <S> Change the fan connection to the vent. <S> Dampen the vent. <S> Change the size or length of the vent. <S> If you can't or don't want to change the fan, then try dampening the vent by clamping it somewhere to the building structure and possibly adding some padding or pipe insulation where it makes those connections. <S> This changes the resonance length without changing the actual length of the pipe. <S> If dampening the vent doesn't work, then you can change the length of the vent. <S> You mention that you can't make it shorter, but perhaps you can make it longer, or larger. <S> Check the manufacturers requirements on the maximum length, number of elbows, minimum size, and required slope before making any changes like this. <A> This is an incomplete idea, and I'm not sure whether or not it will violate code, but you can take a page from automotive engineering and install a muffler on the end of the pipe. <S> This will damp out resonance in the air stream by buffering the air stream. <S> It seems a few people have have had this idea - this guy made one by taking a 2" pipe, perforating it, wrapping fiberglass around it, and then surrounding it with a 4" pipe. <S> The perforations and glass pack will absorb sound, like a silencer for a gun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPN2uUfx7C4 <S> Here's an example from a particularly designed car exhaust: http://www.myrideisme.com/Blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/howto.car.mufflers002.jpg <S> Alternatively, your best bet might be to run 2" PVC all the way out of the house - if my physics classes taught me anything, that transition from 2" to 3" might be acting as a resonance chamber; some very high end tuned exhaust systems do this on purpose to set up resonance in the exhaust to suck air out of the engine just before the exhaust valves close. <A> I can answer this for those that experience this with the HTP PH-LD. <S> these are vary nice stainless steel machines. <S> It can be corrected with an offset adjustment on the gas valve. <S> An experienced technician can adjust this to run perfectly and not have any sound. <S> The fan speed can also be turned down in the program but don't turn it down for the noise. <S> This has a strong fan for long distance venting. <S> To get the gas valve adjusted just right, first set it to low fire. <S> Press and hold the top two buttons for 5 seconds until it enters service mode. <S> Use the left button to take it to low fire and adjust the offset to achieve CO² 8.5% to 9%. <S> Take it to high fire and set the throttle screw to .2% to <S> .3% higher <S> then what it was on low fire. <S> For example: Low fire 9%, high fire 9.2%. <S> If there is still some sound, start over on low fire and increase the suggested setting richer till it vanishes. <S> These units must have a combustion test performed to dial them in correctly as the manual states for trouble free long life that needs no service. <S> These advanced instructions are not in the manual but works on other high performance Ultra low NOx products as well. <A> I had the same problem with a recently installed HTP Phoenix Light Duty. <S> When it would fire up to high, there would be a reverberation that sounded kind of like it was coming from the exhaust pipe. <S> It was especially bad at the vent exit from the garage. <S> The noise was periodic, meaning that it would come on for a few seconds and then go off. <S> Did not have the problem on low fire.
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With some prompting, my contractor did a combustion analysis on the unit, made some adjustments to the gas valve, and now the noise is gone. Couple options come to mind: Change the fan.
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How can I replace a tilt up garage door, with near zero clearance, low overhead? I have a 'tilt up' garage door with an past-end-of-life track. I'm told by several local garage door companies that tilt up hardware is not made any more. Yet even the low clearance roll-up overhead doors can't match the headroom of the old tilt up. The garage ceiling is just 82", and the present door gives a 75 1/2" clearance above. Modern low overhead tracks give us an entry low spot of 72" or less: "duck when entering". What might be a suitable replacement?Note we want automatic opening, so we can slide right in with bikes (we do all shopping and much travel by bike). Note: There's a hole in the floor that implies the original 1938 door swung out, but now the driveway slope appears to preclude swing out, at least without grinding away some material. There's a small triangular space above the ceiling, but only a few inches at the front. The current door appears 1950's. See also What are Automatic Garage Door Options for a Garage with a Low Ceiling Clearance? Update : the ceiling is lathe and plaster directly on the joists, which run parallel to the door opening. You could hide a spiral spring up there, but not much else. <Q> If the problem is only the track/hardware (and it looks like your door is in pretty good shape from the photos) and you could stand to wait for a little while, I have an alternate suggestion. <S> Chances are they could come up with it within a month (I took a 7' one piece out today. <S> I'd offer you parts, but I'm in Arkansas <S> and I don't see you making the trip for it). <S> It's a bit of a trick to put an opener on a tilt-up door but it can be done in most cases. <S> Torsion to the rear should be able to work if you do replace you current door. <S> Tell them to bring the cables over the top of the drums so they are up higher. <A> As you're using your garage for storage, and not a vehicle, you could replace the door with shed-style doors ... but it will decrease the resale value of the house, and they don't seal against the weather quite as well. <S> Depending on the neighborhood, it may also violate your covenant. <S> update : oops, missed the part below the picture, where you said it looks like it used to swing out. <S> There are some hinges that will lift as the door opens (so they're self closing via gravity). <S> That might give you sufficient clearance. <S> I've also considered mounting a caster on the outer edge of my garage doors so that they don't sag / drag as much. <A> http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/normstahl-entrematic/awning-garage-doors-galvanized-steel-automatic-54648-1542701.html <S> These are made in Italy. <S> And they maybe the only tilt in left. <A> As long as your door is structurally sound (no rotting or broken framing pieces) and moves up and down smoothly, you CAN put an opener on this kind of door. <S> I see them all the time in the Seattle area. <S> Grab the door from the top center while it's closed and pull in. <S> The door should swing out and rise without issue. <S> If so, you can put an opener on it. <S> Honestly, for your situation, your type of door is the best type to have, as it requires little to no extra headroom. <S> Now, that said, this hardware is definitely hard to come by. <S> I do still remove them from time to time, but in the last year, I've only removed 4 of this type of door. <S> If you want to refit the door, honestly, your best bet is to talk to a company in western Europe, like the UK, Germany, or Italy, to see about buying the hardware you need. <S> There are some companies that sell this hardware online, but you'll need to contact them first to arrange the international shipping. <S> For an opener, you may need to actually mount it back farther in the garage to get the operating clearance you'll need to make everything run smoothly. <S> If you have to mount it back so far that the two parts of the door arm can't connect, you can make an extension with some thick wall metal electrical conduit. <S> Good luck, and if you have further questions, feel free to look me up. <A> What's the opening UNDER the fully open door right now? <S> You might be able to simply lower the opening, without really "losing" anything (or much) over what you have now, counting the door hanging there. <S> Your measurements and your pictures don't appear to agree, or imply that you are taking an "opening" measurement to something that's not actually open - there appears to be ~2 inches above your door, on the inside shot. <S> Add a few inches at the front in the space above, and you might get there if you opened the ceiling up. <S> As far as I recall, the best I could find 10 years ago was 7 inches above door opening for the "special low-rise door track" - fortunately, I was shopping at building design time, so I just raised the wall height to get something that worked. <S> Edit: Responding to comment: is there some additional aspect going on here, like the garage door company trying to sell you an opener (how they love to sell openers) as well, which is adding 3" to the low rise? <S> I remain befuddled at openers, since my properly adjusted 10x10 foot commercial-type insulated door (heavy) is easy to open by hand... <S> There's 3" gone missing someplace there. <S> Are they not fully retracting the door around the corner at the top? <S> That should be an easy adjustment if the garage is deep enough to run the door further back on the horizontal track. <S> The actual lip of the opening should be the low point, and 7" above that should clear the mechanism, so 75 inches should be achievable. <S> I also found this on a poke around the web - "low head-room rear mount springs" which is not something I found 10 years ago, and claims 4" clearance to operate (unless, of course, you require an opener.) <S> Note: <S> Standard Lift doors require a minimum of 12" of over door height. <S> Not enough headroom? <S> Don't worry. <S> Raynor's Low Headroom Front Mount Springs package reduces the height requirement to 8-1/4" of over door height, while Low Headroom Rear Mount Springs require as little as 4" (plus 2" w/motor operator). <S> And another one with torsion spring to the rear <S> claiming 5" (4-1/2 with extension springs)
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Get friendly with a local door company, not a chain company, and see if they could come up with some used track or hardware (whatever is causing you problems) from a door they take out.
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How do you calculate the safe working load of chains? Say for instance you have a chain that has a safe working load of 200 lbs. If I wanted to hang an item from 4 corners, each with its own chain would I be able to hang 800 lbs? Or is there some other variable to factor? <Q> Another thing to consider is that the effective load on the chains is increased if the chains are not vertical, as would be the case if the chains are attached to the corners of the item, but are all attached to a single central attachment point above. <S> For example, if 1000 lb rated chains are at 45 degrees to the vertical <S> their safe working load limit is reduced to 707 lbs. <S> For overhead lifting where human safety is involved you should use Grade 80 or above. <S> You would probably have to go to a specialty dealer to find it. <S> Proof Coil, Grade 43 (Hi-Test) and Grade 70 (Transport Grade) are not rated for overhead lifting. <A> The safe working load limit is generally 1/4 or 1/5 the minimum breaking strength. <S> So there is a buffer and safeguard already built in if you are using the safe working limit number. <S> However, you should confirm this with the chain's packaging or identification. <S> There are cheap chains at the big-box stores that will have 1/2 ratios - do not use a chain that has a breaking strength of 200lbs to lift a 200lbs object. <S> As for hanging over humans or expensive property - the safe thing to do is to use chain meant for overhead lifting, and give yourself plenty of additional strength. <S> Somethings to consider include a single chain (or attachment point) <S> breaking which means the other 3 chains now have to support 800lbs. <S> Also any movement will cause the load on each corner to vary. <S> While you might think you will mount it and never move it - you never know who will jump up and try to hang on it; or an earthquake will shake things up. <S> Chain is cheap; people's heads are not. <S> If you are supporting 800lbs by 4 corners, use 1000lb working load chain with grade-8 or AN-quality attachments. <A> Well, there's the possibility of non-uniform loading, so probably not. <S> And there's the pesky question of "What happens if this 800 lb. <S> thing plummets?" <S> The fine print on most lifting hardware (chains, hooks, rings, etc) will state that it's not suitable for lifting or supporting loads over people; and hardware that is will be very conservatively rated, at least for that use. <A> No. <S> You always have to approach a lift as though only 2 chains are lifting. <S> Then you need to consider the load factor angles .If <S> its less than 30 degrees its considered a straight lift and <S> you can lift 400.If <S> its above that angle then the 2 chains need to be multiplied by 1.6 or 1.8 which will give you a lower lift capacity of the chains
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Multiply the chain's working load limit by the cosine of the angle between the chain and vertical to get the adjusted limit.
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How do I replace this switch with a timer? I was trying to wire in a timer switch for a vent fan. When I went to replace the switch (which I knew was a 3 pole) I was baffled by the way it was wire. 4 wires run into the box, two of the hot wires go straight to a switch and the other are marred with 2 other black wires that run back to the neutrals on the switches. All 4 white wire are marred. Hopefully these pictures below help make more sense, the switch on the left is a light and the switch on the right if for the fan that I want to put a timer on but as it's a 3 way switch, I'm not really certain how to go about determine which wires are hot/common/traveler etc) http://s1067.photobucket.com/user/mitts14/library/ <Q> I've annotated your image... <S> It's not possible from the image to tell which of the wires marked with red is the feeder from the breaker, and which is the feeder to other devices on the circuit. <S> However, since you're simply replacing a switch with a timer, you'll not have to touch these wires anyway. <S> The neutrals can also be ignored, unless you're installing a "smart" switch that requires a neutral wire. <S> Without knowing the exact make and model of the timer being installed, it's not possible to provide exact installation instructions. <S> Instead I'll provide basic "typical" installation steps. <S> Start by turning off the power to this circuit at the breaker/fuse box, and verifying the power is off using a non-contact voltage tester. <S> Remove the two black wires from the switch you'll be replacing (One marked orange, and one marked blue in the image above). <S> Throw the now disconnected switch haphazardly over your left shoulder. <S> Connect a bare or green wire from the grounding screw in the box to the green screw or wire <S> labeled Ground on the device. <S> Connect the black wire coming from the twist-on wire connector (labeled orange in the image above) to the black screw or wire labeled <S> Common on the device. <S> Connect the other black wire to the brass screw or wire <S> labeled Load on the device. <S> (Optionally) If a neutral is required, follow steps 7a - 7c a. Remove the twist-on wire connectors connecting the neutral wires. <S> b. Include a short bit of white wire in the bundle, and reinstall the twist-on wire connector <S> (make sure the connector is rated for the proper number of conductors, a new twist-on wire connector may be required). <S> c. Connect the other end of the short bit of white wire to the silver screw or wire labeled Neutral on the device. <S> Restore power at the breaker/fuse box. <S> Turn the fan on/off a few times and marvel at how awesome you are. <S> YOU have harnessed ELECTRICITY!!! <S> Here's some wiring diagrams from various timers on the market... <A> As others commented, it's a bit hard to tell without looking at the back of the switches, but trying to picture what you describe: "two of the hot wires go straight to a switch" One per switch, right? <S> "and the other are marred with 2 other black wires that run back to the neutralson the switches." <S> You have 4 black wires here: <S> * One of the two coming from the wall is the live wire that comes from the breaker and brings power to everything. <S> * <S> * Each one of the remaining two black wires should go to the middle of one of the two switches, to power it. <S> So if I got you right, you will want to identify the two black wires connected to the fan switch - one of the 4 marred ones is the one that powers the switch, and the other goes from the switch straight to the wall to power the fan. <S> This seems a pretty simple setting, so please be extra wary in messing there if you found it confusing. <S> I mean, know your abilities... <S> No offense meant! <A> the blacks that are all tied together are your hots coming from the breaker. <S> one goes to each switch, one from the breaker, then one going out to the next location on the circuit. <S> Same with the whites, all the neutrals connected together. <S> the blacks on each switch that are seperate, go out to the actual devices, light and fan. <S> for the new switch, black to the hot (the group connected together), red to the black going to the fan, and white with the other whites (will replace the old white from old switch). <S> then grounds all get connected together.
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In my understanding these would be the wires that actually go from the switch to either the lightbulb or the fan, so they should only become live when the switch is on. Another of the four goes straight back to the wall, presumably to power other switches (connected to the same breaker of course).
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How to fix a window, keeping rain out but allowing wind in? It's always raining heavily here at my place and I had to keep the room windows shut due to the electrical appliances near the window inside the room. However, the room quickly becomes ill-ventilated. What's the best solution to this dilemna? Is there a window or material covering that does not allow rain and water to enter, yet allows the wind to enter? <Q> <A> I like the answer JonW gave, but also would suggest just putting an awning over your existing window and opening it from the top as it's likely to be a bit less expensive. <S> Edit:I passed this house fixed type awning system and decided to grab a shot to add t this post <A> If you don't mind the loss of light from the window, a louver could be installed. <A> I had the same problem in my home. <S> I live in sausalito,ca. <S> by san francisco bay with a southern exposure. <S> In winter we get 40 plus winds and pouring rain. <S> The rain paired with the wind has even blown in through the top of the window casement. <S> they are wonderful! <S> We have just endured 16 days of torrential rain and over 50 mile an hour winds. <S> The top of the window casement leaked, but not my window baffles. <S> I couldn't find them at the vermont country store. <S> But, I did see them online. <S> Go to google and type; window screens that keep out the rain. <S> The first thing you will see on the top right are; different drawings of screens. <S> the one named thermwell products aws1207 <S> adjustable screen window with ventilator looks like mine. <S> It's a regular screen on the backside and the louvred baffles face inside. <S> I have found that it works well with the baffles facing up. <S> Then just slam your window down hard on the baffle. <S> this makes a good seal. <S> good luck, you're going to love these.
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You can get a Tilt and Turn window - a window that tilts inwards slightly (and locks in place so that it doesn't tip back anymore) to let air circulate, but can also be opened as a traditional window too (albeit one that typically opens inwards instead of outwards). Two years ago I found what I call window baffles, by accident, through the vermont country store co.
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How do I remove plastic shelving molly clips? I have some closet shelving clips I need to remove to paint a wall. The problem is that they are molly bolts. These are the exact clips/mollys. The question is similar to this one , but in my case, I am dealing with molly bolts, instead of simple wall anchors, and they are plastic which have become hardened/stubborn over time (they are less pliable). With a good amount of fanagaling I can rip them out of the wall, but that makes the hole bigger, almost rendering (or actually rendering) the clip usless unless I patch the drywall to reuse the clips. Is there any way I can "uncompress" the molly bolts, so that I can slide them out more easily with less damage to the wall? Most sites/videos on the matter, suggest simply cutting off the molly bolt head and pushing it into the wall but in this case its a shelving clip that I want to reuse so I cant cut it. I saw a youtube video on the subject, where they suggest inserting a small screwdriver into the screw hole and banging with a hammer to decompress it, but because these are plastic and not metal, the molly bolt does not want to "uncompress", it just "bounces" when you try to hit it out. <Q> Leave it in place, use masking tape, paint around it.... <A> You're better off either cutting them flush or pulling the clips out with pliers and patching the holes. <S> A few years ago I repainted my closets and pantry, and decided it was easier to just uninstall EVERYTHING and start over. <S> I had these anchors, which were pretty much impossible to remove without destroying: <S> The anchors you have are also single-use. <S> If you want to put the shelves back up, might I suggest getting brackets to tie into the studs like these : <S> You won't need drywall anchors, and you can use screws directly into the studs, which means stronger support and easier removal in the future. <S> Or you can get replacements for the same type of hardware you have here . <A> Those look like the Closetmaid ones. <S> If you just remove the nail you can gently pull the plastic out. <S> Me <S> I would just paint over them if it's just a closet. <A> I know this is an old thread, but hopefully my suggestion will help people other than the OP. <S> Then you will need to press (not screw and not hammer) the bolt back into the wall while prying out the plastic. <S> This is the idea @Bryce had, but with easily found tools. <S> What you are doing is stretching out the bent plastic closer to the original configuration. <S> It may not be perfect, but it should get the anchor close enough for you to pull it out without enlarging the hole too much. <S> Just make sure to protect your wall from the prying tool, as that can easily leave marks you probably don't want to take the time to fix. <S> As mentioned in other answers, the plastic may be brittle and break. <S> In that case, you'll just have to get new anchors or go with a completely different type of fastener. <S> As @Doresoom suggested, using fasteners into studs is the preferred way to go, but most likely you'll need a stud finder and those can be expensive and/or unreliable. <A> Take the screw out and chisel off the plastic head. <S> Don't try to pull it out, just push it into the wall cavity, spackle it and paint it. <S> Sorry, I missed where you said you want to reuse these. <S> I've always considered these types of anchor bolts as disposable. <S> One use only. <S> Buy news ones as you don't want your shelves to be compromised using wanky, used wall board anchor bolts. <S> These work nice for taking off the heads <A> A tool like this, in the right size, would be perfect. <S> But kinda overkill:
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Since this uses a bolt, rather than a pin, you can screw out the bolt until it's loose, then gently pry on the plastic hanger until you can get a pry bar/claw hammer/something between it and the wall.
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How can I stop kitchen sink caulking from peeling off after a few weeks? We recently had a new metal kitchen sink and Formica counter-tops professionally installed, but the installer did not apply any caulking around the sink. During a follow-up call with the counter-top company, we were told that their installers do not caulk. I bought some clear General Electric silicone caulk, caulked it myself, and let it dry for several days under a plastic sheet to ensure that it was well cured. A few weeks after, the caulk started to peel away from the edge of the sink. I had followed the directions on the silicone caulk product, and cleaned the area before applying it. What's the best way to prepare and caulk a sink so that the caulk doesn't continuously just come away from the edges it's intended to seal? I want to do it as well as possible, so the caulking lasts months instead of weeks. To be honest, I am annoyed that I have to deal with this myself. We hired professional counter-top installer from a reputable local company to handle exactly this kind of thing on our behalf. <Q> If the plastic sheet you put over the curing caulk formed a vapor seal, the caulk did not cure properly which could make it not adhere and peel. <S> Curing caulk should be left open to the air to off gas at its natural rate determined primarily by temperature. <S> As long as the sink is at room temperature this should happen in less than 24 hours . <S> Do not disturb or splash it within the first 30 minutes. <S> As long as the counter top is an ordinary material—stone, wood laminate, or composite—it just has to be clean and dry before caulking. <S> I certainly would expect a professional sink installer to caulk. <S> Perhaps they refused because one of the counter or sink materials is known not to work? <S> Oily woods like Rosewood, Ebony, Cumaru, Ipe, <S> etc. <S> are well known to be difficult to glue together. <S> See this . <A> Many drop in sinks require the caulk to be applied under the sink before it's dropped in, where it will not be visible. <S> The bead of caulk will be just under the edge of the rim, and any excess is wiped away after the sink is clamped down. <S> Check the installation instructions for your sink to see if this was the requirement for yours, and if so, you may need to pull it out to properly caulk it in place. <A> Caulk tends to do that when it doesn't adhere to the surface. <S> Most commonly it doesn't adhere because the surface still has moisture in it, for instance, a porous surface that hasn't dried out yet. <S> I would recommend removing all existing caulk then letting the area dry out as much as possible for 2-3 days - protect it from water if you use it, but make sure moisture can escape. <S> It's possible that the plastic sheet you're covering it with while it is curing is preventing the moisture from leaving which is contributing to the problem.
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A solvent can be used just before caulking to improve performance.
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Can I modify the vent from my high efficiency furnace to prevent possible damage to the exterior of my home? is my high efficiency furnace vent installed properly? I'm based in Toronto, Canada. In some recent cold winter weather, the exhaust is causing a lot of ice buildup on the surrounding brick. To my limited knowledge, lots of freeze / thaw cycles for brick is a bad thing, which can cause brick to deteriorate rapidly. So is this an issue? If so, is it worth correcting and are there any easy DIY solutions that you would recommend? Could I change the venting to just be one vent, instead of two (right now the exhaust vents both up and down)? And maybe aim the exhaust a bit further from the brick? <Q> I am a Local HVAC Tech in the Toronto area. <S> As stated, this exhaust is not installed according to local codes and the manufacturers installation instructions. <S> The reason for having the vent terminate straight out and away from the building is to avoid this. <S> The facing of the brick will chip off after a few years of this. <S> Now if the termination is 2ft or less, you do not need to insulate the exhaust. <S> However, in your situation there is a long termination, which requires it being insulated to prevent freezing. <S> You should have from where the tee started, to where the pipe enters the house fully insulated. <S> Then using system 636 PVC glue and primer if doing it in cold weather, glue a system 636 PVC elbow onto the end of the termination so that it is blowing the exhaust straight away from the house. <S> Then cut a 6" piece of system 636 2" PVC pipe and glue that into the elbow to help throw the exhaust further away from the structure. <S> Doing all of the above would solve all the termination issues, and bring it back up to code. <A> The exhaust pipe discharge is too close to the house. <S> It should extend 8 to 12 inches from the wall if using tee on vent end. <S> The exhaust might have been placed in its odd position because of a gas regulator vent. <S> I see the pipe exits near the gas service. <S> From a survey of high efficiency furnace installation manuals, and my own experience installing my furnace, the exhaust vent termination must meet the following conditions (although the installation instructions may vary): <S> Be <S> at least 6 inches from operational window openings Be at least 3 feet horizontally from service regulator vents, extending 15 feet vertically <S> (Applies to Canada, not US.) <S> Extend 8 to 12 inches from walls if using tee vent. <S> (This doesn't seem to apply if venting perpendicular to wall). <S> Be at least 3 inches in the horizontal and 12 inches in the vertical from the intake pipe <S> Be at least 12 inches off the ground or anticipated snow level (if applicable , definitely applies in Canada). <S> The tee at the end is optional unless your instruction manual says otherwise. <S> Although there is a limit on the number of 90 degree turns you're allowed to put in the vent, in your case, I'd cut off the tee and put an elbow that directs outward from the wall. <S> You must make sure that you maintain the slope so that the condensate drains back to the furnace. <A> There are two things you need to look at to get an answer. <S> Local Building Code <S> Manufacturer's installation manual <S> Both of those will probably address how far away from a window or door and how far away from certain building materials the exhaust vent must be. <S> So make a phone call to your local code authority and find the installation manual for your furnace. <S> The manufacturer installation manual will dictate the maximum length of the exhaust vent. <S> It will also dictate things like slope and end treatment of the exhaust. <A> You'll probably have to maintain the Tee exit - it serves a couple of purposes - harder to block, and less prone to backdraft. <S> Should be able to move it a bit further from the building. <S> That installation looks dubious (to me) as it stands in part due to the vent-end proximity to the window. <S> Different codes in different places - the gas meter right next to the electric would not fly here, either - 10 foot minimum. <S> Obviously that's OK with the Gas and Electric services in Toronto. <A> Like you noticed, your HVAC vent is wrong. <S> Cut off all that PVC on the wall and install a vent/intake box. <S> Your gas and electric are too close, UBC says your natural gas vent should be no less than 3 feet from electric service. <S> There are no poles or "bollards" protecting your gas meter. <S> I could keep going... <A> This is not only a poor install but it is against gas codes. <S> You cant have combustion air vented into your appliance within 4 meters of your gas meter. <S> If there is ever a leak, and you're burner is on, you're appliance becomes a bomb. <S> I would have this looked at. <S> Sorry man.
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Another issue i see is that any exhaust for a high efficiency gas appliance must be insulated when being run in an unconditioned space (such as in a garage or running under a deck). My solution would be to cut off the tee at the end of the termination, slide on armaflex pipe insulation around the exhaust. There is no surprise that you are getting freezing condensation on the brick of the house. The contractor that built your house needs to read a little book called "uniform building code." Wow, everything looks wrong.
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How to drill a hole in the wood without an electric drill? During a travel in Laos, I need to drill some holes into a double-door's wood to install a locker. The wood is rather hard, and I don't have an electric drill (and can't find it). I only have 2 small screwdrivers ( - and + ), a small hammer, but I can find screws, nails, and other basic tools. The wood is hard (so much that I can't even make enter a small srew), screwdrivers are not good quality ones and screws are even worst. Any recommendation for locking a door from the inside would be interesting if it's not possible. <Q> Get a block of wood big enough to hold in your hand. <S> Scrape out small hole in the wood. <S> The non-pointy end of the drill bit goes in that hole. <S> This is called the "hand hold". <S> You're going to use this wood block to push the drill bit against the door. <S> Make a bow with some strong wood and strong string. <S> Wrap the string around the drill bit, perhaps a couple times to get a good grip on the bit. <S> Drill into the wood by pushing on the handhold and moving the bow. <S> You can find more thorough instructions on creating a bow drill for firestarting here: http://www.wildwoodsurvival.com/survival/fire/bowdrill/pmoc/basicbowdrill.html <A> The traditional answer for drilling larger holes would be a brace and bit . <A> If you can get your hands on a file, you could modify a screw to be self-drilling. <S> File a v notch along the tip of the screw so that one face scrapes wood out of the inside of the hole as the screw is driven. <S> (like the tip of the screw in the picture) <S> (image from this related question ) <S> If the notch is hard to file, you can do it on just one screw and reuse it a few times. <A> One product I know that would allow you to secure a door from the inside without the need to drill any holes through the door is a Door Guardian . <S> Door Guardian Picture <S> http://www.thedoorguardian.com/images/img4.jpg <S> As long as you can drive three screws into the door frame, you should be able to install this. <S> It doesn't require aligning multiple parts and offers far more protection than a chain or slide bolts. <S> I am not affiliated with this company or product, it is just something that I've used before
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Make a bow drill:
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