gregmac

14,446 reputation

3067

bio	website	gregmaclellan.com
	location	Canada
	age	32
visits	member for	2 years, 10 months
	seen	3 hours ago
stats	profile views	355

Professional software developer, with several years working on industrial control and monitoring systems. Slowly remodeling parts of my house.

	14,446 reputation	bio	website	gregmaclellan.com	visits	member for	2 years, 10 months
3067 badges		location	Canada		seen	3 hours ago

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Jan 4	comment	Which way does air flow into a furnace? Here's a good cut-away diagram of a typical gas furnace that shows the airflow (source)
Jan 3	comment	wiring a single bathroom fan servicing 2 rooms in the master bathroom suite with 2 separate switches on the same circuit as well as lighting Are you trying to get one switch in each room to turn on the local light AND fan (eg, diy.stackexchange.com/questions/21845) or do you just want a fan switch in each room (3-way, or timers so either turn on the fan), and a separate light switch in each room (which only turns on the local light)? Hint: two switches in each room is significantly simpler, and IMHO using count-down timers is one of the best ways to control an exhaust fan.
Jan 2	comment	Can I repurpose existing cat5 telephone line for Ethernet networking? FYI - T568A and T568B are identical in function, it's just the color scheme is different. In both cases, the blue (middle) pair is used for analog telephone, and orange+green is ethernet. However, gigabit ethernet uses all 4 pairs.
Jan 2	comment	Are these toilet bolts installed properly? +1 for describing the fix.
Dec 31	comment	How can I wire an exhaust fan to turn on from multiple locations? As Tester101 says, if you use a separate switch for the fan (one in each bathroom) this would be quite simple. With this option, you could also use a countdown timer, which is a great way to control bathroom fans. They come with different time ranges: max 15 minutes is great for powder rooms (smells..) while 30 or 60 is good for humidity from showers. This keeps the fan running for a bit after the light shuts off, though you do have to remember to actually turn it on.
Dec 31	comment	How can I wire an exhaust fan to turn on from multiple locations? Also, this calls for labels: putting something like "to fan and bathroom 2 switch" on the wire would be immensely helpful to any electrician in the future.
Dec 31	comment	How can I wire an exhaust fan to turn on from multiple locations? I don't see why a DPST switch would be against code. The concern I'd have would be the power source. If the bathrooms are on a different breaker, you cause a potentially dangerous situation: turning off the breaker for bathroom 1 would mean that if someone turned on the switch in bathroom 2, it would energizing one pole of the switch in bathroom 1. If they're on the same breaker, or OP could run a common source for the fan to both switches, this situation wouldn't be a problem. At the VERY least (and this may be a code issue) swap in a double-pole breaker to power both bathrooms.
Dec 31	comment	Can I attach a kitchen vent and a dryer vent to the same exhaust? I am almost certain that plastic tubing is not rated for use as a stove exhaust, but either way I would not use it there (or anywhere, to be honest). Like @BMitch says, use smooth, rigid tubing as much as possible (better airflow, and less chance for buildup to accumulate), and only use the (metallic) flex tube for the final hookups, if needed.
Dec 21	comment	What should I use as a base for my wall mounted PC case? Interesting look, if you're into that -- but this could really benefit from some split-loom tubing or hook-and-loop cable wrap (no affiliation or endorsement, just convenient links).
Dec 20	comment	Is it expensive to switch from an 80% to a 90% efficient furnace, to comply with the new mandate? I'm pretty sure there are also minimum clearance requirements between furnace exhaust and windows/doors, so that can obviously affect the route the pipes need to take.
Dec 18	comment	How can I stop my fireplace from disabling my thermostat? (Ask your landlord to) move the thermostat permanently. If it's a problem for you, it's a problem for anyone else in the future having a fire.
Dec 17	comment	How do I deal with vapour barrier for central vac inlets in exterior walls? @MatthewPK you're talking about a fire that ended up melting the box, as opposed to one caused by a vac because it had 120V like this one, correct (I hope)? That's actually something I never would have thought of. In theory this could also happen anywhere along the line: if the control wire melts and shorts, the vac would turn on. If there's a hole in the pipe or inlet, it would suck whatever is there up. Still, it should only be spreading embers back to the vacuum. This may be enough to start a second fire, but I'd question how significant a role the vac really played overall.
Dec 17	comment	How do I deal with vapour barrier for central vac inlets in exterior walls? I'm in southern Ontario (Canada), which means we get temperatures typically ranging from -20C to +30C. The house is 9 years old, and has a typical (for this area) 6-mil vapour barrier. The basement is unfinished, and the vapour barrier is up but not sealed (unfortunately, typical), but I intend to fix that when I finish the basement (or before). The garage is not conditioned, and the 2 exterior walls have no vapour barrier or insulation (also one has a giant openable hole to the outside in the form of a door 2 cars can fit through).
Dec 14	comment	How do I connect a timer to circuit box which controls our outside lights? When you say circuit breaker, I am picturing something like this: freesunpower.com/images/project1_begin.jpg, but then you're saying the fixture is the "same thing"? It would be very helpful if you could post a picture of the fixture, box, and junction box in question (with wires visible) and labels always help..
Dec 14	comment	What does the latch position of a circuit breaker mean? @HenryJackson - You should rephrase the first sentence: to me the "normal" position is on or off, being tripped (in the middle) is not "normal" in that if it trips, there is a problem, and having a problem is really the exact opposite of being "normal".
Dec 14	comment	How do I choose the correct size pump and pressure tank? I should also add, the sizing depends on a bit on the type of system you get. A constant pressure pump is a variable-speed pump that has a pressure sensor and automatically adjusts the speed so it always delivers within a couple PSI of your target, and they use much smaller pressure tanks than typical constant-speed pumps, but of course they also cost more. Aside from a smaller tank, the benefit is the pressure doesn't surge up and down between the typical 40/60 psi range that constant-speed pump systems do.
Dec 13	comment	How do I choose the correct size pump and pressure tank? By "airbag", I presume you mean "pressure tank"? (FYI: I've never heard it referred to as "airbag", in North America at least it's called "pressure tank" or occasionally "bladder tank".) Is the pump gravity-fed from the bottom of the tank, or are you looking for a jet pump to pull through pipes that go over the top? How high is the tank? Any objection to just putting a submersible pump in the tank? (this is what we did where I used to work - more reliable, no priming, only thing it requires is access to get it in).
Dec 9	comment	How can I add ventilation to my room? You should give us some more context. Is this a room in a house, apartment? What is the heat source now? Does the rest of the house/building have forced air or some other type of ventilation? Did someone renovate and make this by splitting an existing room, or was it originally built without ventilation? What's the age of the building? Are you constrained to doing stuff just within your room or can you make modifications to the surrounding structure?
Dec 7	comment	Is a ground required when replacing an old single pole single throw switch? It seems to me this answer also talks as if the switch is not grounded at all. I've come across the following situation many times: the box is grounded, and the switch (which is mostly metal) is screwed into the box which provides a conductive path so all the metal is grounded. The newer switches add a ground screw to the metal body, so now the switch can be grounded via a dedicated ground wire IN ADDITION to the screws holding it in the box. In this situation, is it necessary, by code, to connect this ground wire? Is it different for new vs retrofit?
Dec 4	comment	How can I repair this door and deadlock? I saw the picture before I read your text, and my first thought was that someone tried to kick in your door. This is the trouble with hollow-core exterior doors though, in addition to the lack of insulation: they can easily be kicked in. That's why most exterior doors are solid wood or steel fiberglass.