All Questions
7
votes
1answer
436 views
My radon manometer has a red reading, what should I do?
We purchased a home a few years ago and it has a radon mitigation system. I just happened to go downstairs and look at it and noticed this reading. What should I check? Should I be alarmed?
EDIT
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5
votes
1answer
342 views
Why does a single radiator need regular bleeding?
Almost all of the radiators (forced water) in my house heat up fine. However, a single radiator needs regular bleeding (~1/day) in order to heat. Note, this radiator is not at the highest point in the ...
5
votes
1answer
615 views
What do I level a 2" slope in my concrete basement floor?
I want to finish a 12'x36' part of my basement. The trouble I am having is that it is sloped to a floor drain. I was told that DRIcore and shims would work but the drain is a 2" slope down from the ...
4
votes
1answer
125 views
How can I soundproof my bedroom walls as cost effectively as possible?
My bedroom is next to the kitchen on one wall, a hallway on one wall, the outdoors on one wall and the PC room on the other. The wall that bothers us the most is the kitchen wall.
We would like to ...
4
votes
1answer
170 views
Is there any NEC code requirement for how far off the floor Category 5 wiring must be run?
I am currently running conduit for Cat5e cable in the home office I am finishing off. Are there any rules in the code for how far off the floor Category 5 wires in conduit must be run?
3
votes
1answer
41 views
Does a door have to be hung on the edge of the jamb
My door jamb is around 140mm, does the door have to be hung on the edge of the jamb like all the other doors in the house, or can i hang it toward the center of the jamb by 70mm so it can clear a wash ...
3
votes
1answer
51 views
Can I use epoxy putty to patch metal?
The outer "frame" of my fireplace is comprised of a thin, sheet-metal-like material that is separating at the seams in some places. Ants are finding their way up from beneath the fireplace and making ...
3
votes
1answer
76 views
How do I repair a warped sliding glass door track?
I was a landlord for the first time this past year, and I had a couple of surprises when I visited the place to say goodbye to my tenant. The largest being that the sliding glass door barely opened ...
3
votes
1answer
56 views
What is the best way to build a box to elevate my bathroom fan above joists?
I want to create a register/ return air type box about 4" high so my bathroom fan's exhaust will be above the joists so that the duct can have the shortest and most direct run to a gable vent. Is ...
3
votes
1answer
146 views
Why does my boiler keep shutting down and reigniting after a minute?
My central heating comes on via the timer and runs for about 30 minutes, then it shuts down for a minute, runs for 2 minutes, shuts down for a minute, runs for 2 minutes. This is a constant thing ...
3
votes
1answer
87 views
What could be causing this leak near my chimney?
I had a new roof put on in 2010 and had no problems... recently I've noticed that I'm getting water in my house. Its coming down along side where my chimney is and making large bubbles in my walls. We ...
3
votes
1answer
226 views
How can I insulate kitchen vent to prevent cold air blowing through all the time?
Building code requires my kitchen to have a 15cmx15cm vent (besides the kitchen cook-top vent). This vent is basically a hole in the wall that reaches to the outside. The vent has grating on both ...
3
votes
1answer
308 views
Wainscoting a wall that has windows without casings. Is there a typical trim method?
We're redoing our front room in our house. We're thinking of going with a 'seaside cottage' feel and installing some wainscoting on the walls about 2/3rds the way up.
The catch is that our house ...
3
votes
1answer
1k views
Can I replace broken clips in a recessed light fixture?
I have discovered some of the remodel cans (Halo/Elite) that I had an electrician install have broken clips (the clips that hold the can to the drywall). Are these easy to replace or does the entire ...
3
votes
1answer
942 views
Why won't my ice maker eject ice?
I have a component-style ice maker, by which I mean it's not one of the modular kinds with holes for probe tests. It's similar to that style in that the water fills the mold, then the thermostat ...
2
votes
1answer
24 views
Is my well pump serviceable after overheating and starting to leak?
A 'handy man' did work on my plumbing and shut off the main water to the house. He did not unplug the well pump, and it got really hot to the touch. When we hooked everything back up again, the pump ...
2
votes
1answer
78 views
How can I hang a custom lamp from the ceiling by its cord?
I have purchased a lamp shade, which I would like to hang from the ceiling on a cord of specific color (in this case orange). I have had a previous lamp, which included the cord, which I replaced and ...
2
votes
1answer
33 views
Do I add calcite or magnesium first to my new acid neutralizer?
So I am replacing a smaller acid neutralizer with a larger one. Bought it at the local water store, had a nice chat with Wolfgang. He loaded 3 bags of calcite and one box of Magnesium mix. He told ...
2
votes
1answer
58 views
How do we replace an old 3-wire thermostat with a 4-wire one?
How do we replace an old 3 wire thermostat with a 4 wire one? We have an AC/heating unit, but the wiring for the thermostat does not have a yellow wire.
What can we do?
2
votes
1answer
77 views
Should I add landscape rock before or after installing a fence around a dog pen?
I am making a 20'x15' dog pen area. The L-shaped fence will be against the house on each end. This is new construction, so I'm waiting on final grade.
Should I install the fence, leaving a 5" gap ...
2
votes
1answer
127 views
How do I calculate the takeoff for a 45 degree elbow joint?
I'm trying to install a 45° elbow joint in PVC. I've found several suggestions online, but frankly, they are incomprehensible to me and seem contradictory of one another:
...
0
votes
0answers
102 views
Heating time with a Baxi Luna 240i
I live in a building with 4 floors and 2 boilers.
3
2 boiler
1 boiler
0 <-- i live here.
When in the bathroom if i want warm water in the washer i have to also turn on the bidet hot water on ...
0
votes
0answers
114 views
How to repair an exterior crack around a window in a concrete block house?
How do I repair a crack around my casement window in my Concrete Block Structure (CBS) home?
0
votes
0answers
640 views
Adjusting a Mixer Tap Hot/Cold Mix
I have a Twyford mixer tap on my bathroom washbasin (Exact model here).
As it stands the Hot/Cold mix I can get out of it is either very hot or very cold, with a tiny area in the middle giving a ...
0
votes
0answers
74 views
Should I use glue even if I've prepped floor by sanding & cleaning with amonia & water to put down vinyl tiles over old ones?
I have already sanded and washed the old vinyl tile flooring twice. I will be fixing the areas needed with patch. But, should I still use glue to put down the new tiles? Some people say I shouldn't ...
0
votes
0answers
55 views
What should I consider when purchasing a good quality primer/sealer for new drywall?
We recently mudded new sheetrock, followed by orange peel texture: it was our first time doing this so did not get a perfect outcome. We wish now that we had primed/sealed it before texturing, but ...
0
votes
0answers
141 views
Should I spread lime in my crawlspace before laying moisture barrier?
The crawlspace is currently just earth. I'm going to be raking it, laying moisture barrier and then taping to seal.
Should I spread lime onto the earth before laying the barrier?
0
votes
0answers
142 views
In a Concrete and steel building, how do I jack up my basement apartment and isolate it from the rest of the building?
I am living in a concrete and steel apartment building in Saint Louis, MO. The walls and floors of the first floor (read basement) are falling because they were built on the dirt in the basement ...
0
votes
0answers
82 views
I have no furnace, only electric blowing heaters. How do I get ventilation?
I have a 100 years old building with a store on the main floor. Since the building was built over 100 years old there is no ducting whatsoever. There is also no furnace. In the summer we just hook ...
0
votes
0answers
36 views
What are suction-type automatic pool cleaners made of?
The lead ballast on my aquabot finally wore through the plastic belly that held it, so it dropped out and the bot floated to the surface, chomping away at the waves instead of smooching the pool ...
0
votes
0answers
165 views
Is glow in the dark paint suitable for creative usage?
I came across the notion of a Light/UV -sensitive background, to perform temporary creative photographic effects. This seems to be a paper/cloth impregnated with a Light/UV sensitive coating, that ...
0
votes
0answers
118 views
What could cause this ceiling fan and light issue?
I have a ceiling fan with a switch that has both a dimmer for the light in the fan and a speed adjuster for the fan itself. Only the light dimmer side works and when I turn it on both the fan and the ...
0
votes
0answers
91 views
replaced shower valve/stems…in bathroom! now kitchen hot water turns off at times!?! What happened?
Replaced bathroom parts,was doing dishes and the hot water just stopped. Checked everything under sink cleaned the garbage disp. Looked for build up next thing you know ok! Next day same thing ...
0
votes
0answers
164 views
Can I manually run the blower on my Lennox G12Q3 furnace?
I have a Lennox G12Q3-120-6 model furnace. Does anyone know if there's a way to manually run just the blower without heat?
There are no switches on the outside that I can see (other than the power ...
0
votes
0answers
182 views
Quick fix for a toilet that flushes water “under” material?
I've recently moved into a rented property with a dual-flush toilet. When flushing the "new" water seems to be sent directly "under" any paper/waste thats in the bowl, causing it to "roll" over the ...
0
votes
0answers
201 views
Is it possible to retrofit an external kitchen fan in an existing house?
I have a 2-storey half duplex that was built in 2008. The kitchen (1st floor) has a range hood fan that exhausts to the side of the house through 8" aluminum duct. The outside vent is not directly ...
0
votes
0answers
147 views
How to add inhibitor to old Potterton Kingfisher central heading system
I have just replaced a radiator and about 6m of pipework in a room we are remodelling. Works fine.
The radiator instructions state that the system should be flushed with a cleaning product then a ...
0
votes
0answers
158 views
Help identify this electric clothes dryer part from an Asko T701 dryer?
I just replaced the drum rollers on my Asko T701 electric clothes dryer. As I was removing the front frame to access the rollers, this metal part fell out (the Sharpie is just there for scale):
I ...
0
votes
0answers
182 views
Wall paper over textured (hessian) wallpaper
I'm trying to wall paper some internal doors (cupboards, wardrobe) in a caravan.
They already have hessian wallpaper on them, and I'd rather not try to get it off, as I think the act of doing that ...
0
votes
0answers
192 views
Running Shower Faucet After Hot Water Heater's Off
I was awoke by a chemical smell from my electric hot water heater. The past two weeks I noticed my shower was not getting/staying very hot during my 10 minute showers. Thinking not too much about it, ...
0
votes
0answers
316 views
A/C system reports Limit Switch Stuck Open
Unit is a York GM9S080B12UP11G.
When switching thermostat to cool, the system activates the compressor fan. Also, I can hear gases moving through the pipes running to the compressor. However, the ...
0
votes
0answers
131 views
How do I increase the height of a sliding glass door lock?
I recently installed a dog door panel for my sliding patio glass door. The way the dog door was made I had to install it centered in the patio door channel vs flush with the sliding glass door. This ...
0
votes
0answers
106 views
How to deliver hot water from bathroom to kitchen
My appartment (and all my neighbours as well) doesn't have hot water. So I recently purchased electric boiler (80L) and placed it in the bathroom. Now I'm planing to deliver the hot water from the ...
0
votes
0answers
102 views
Is it normal to have air under a pool cover when it hasn't been used for a while?
This will be the first year I have had a pool so I am really new at all this stuff.
I took a look under the winter cover of my pool and I noticed that my liner has gotten all wrinkled up like it ...
0
votes
0answers
193 views
What could cause water to surge from bathroom taps?
We fitted new bathroom taps, both bath and basin. There dosnt seem to be a constant flow in any of the taps. It suddenly gushes out at full flow, then suddenly stops. You have to keep adjusting the ...
0
votes
0answers
2k views
Is IdeaPaint worth the money or will Rust-Oleum Dry Erase Paint work similarly well?
As far as I can tell, there are 2 main dry erase paints on the market - IdeaPaint and Rust-Oleum Dry Erase Paint. They have the same purpose but differ greatly in price (IdeaPaint being almost 10 ...
0
votes
0answers
99 views
Is zeolite effective for controlling room odor?
http://www.refreshinglyfree.com/Online-Catalog/Zeolite-Odor-and-Moisture-Control-Products says so, but I'm not entirely convinced.
0
votes
0answers
217 views
new furnace installed - few questions
So, Sunday the fan on our 18 year old furnace died; instead of paying the $600 to get it repaired, i opted to buy a new one.
Lennox SPV98UV (i think) 98% efficient / variable speed fan. they ...
-1
votes
0answers
40 views
Is modelling clay of any use in repairs?
I recently found so-called modelling clay at a local shop - stuff originally intended for sculpturing models and dolls and other small figures of various shapes.
It comes in a wide range of colors. ...
-1
votes
0answers
33 views
Should I use a separate pump for my solar pool heating system?
I just got the solar panels and have an extra pump. Instead of messing with all the PVC on the filter, I was just going to use a separate pump and put hoses in the pool. Figure run it while at work ...
