31
votes
Can I replace a GFCI outlet in a bathroom with an outlet having USB ports?
GFCI outlet in my master bathroom
You can't replace GFCI with non-GFCI in a bathroom. Technically, you could if you replaced the breaker with a GFCI/breaker, but that will cost more.
However, you can ...
31
votes
Can I replace a GFCI outlet in a bathroom with an outlet having USB ports?
Buy a brick!
USB outlets built into walls are overpriced and underspec'ed even the day you install them and they become obsolete like potato salad in the sun.
The Lowe's one in the other answer is 10W ...
- 43.3k
30
votes
How concerning is this water in my bathroom?
To directly answer the "question": Unless you live on a slip-n-slide, water coming out of the floor is very, very concerning. Although ... usually water will leak down into the floor, into ...
- 43.3k
29
votes
Is it a bad idea to install a bathroom vent in a drop ceiling without external exhaust?
You need to exhaust the bathroom via a duct in the ceiling void and through an outside wall. You can't just push bathroom air into the void ... it will cause mold up there and push humidity and ...
- 43.3k
18
votes
How do I fix my bathtub drain plug that's not working?
As a renter, I'd strongly suggest that a basic generic rubber bath plug (the kind you have to put in place and remove manually) is your best bet.
It will work.
It will cost much less than a Grohe ...
- 223k
17
votes
Accepted
Is my contractor right that our nonreturnable hardwired heated towel rack can't be installed in our bathroom?
Ask your contractor to specify exactly which regulation requires that IPX4 rating. Keep in mind that NKBA is not a legally mandated certification, so if the contractor says that it's an NKBA thing, it ...
- 2,430
16
votes
Prevent shower door from sliding open?
Obviously the horizontal bar slopes down when the door is closed. It could be out of level. It could be deflecting under the door weight to give itself downward slope.
You need to reposition the bar. ...
- 10.5k
16
votes
Orange marks on ceiling underneath bathroom
Those are water stains. Something is dripping from upstairs. Check all the caulking and grout lines in the upstairs bath for cracks. Those would be the easiest fixes. The next would be the wax ring ...
- 83.5k
15
votes
Accepted
Will 42.5 in vanity fit in 42 in space?
I suppose you could cut a channel into the drywall, if you actually have room to get the top lined up to shove in.
Unless you've arranged some fiendish hydrualic jack system that will more likely ...
- 223k
15
votes
Accepted
Removing silicone from shower but it’s filling a gap!
Dig out enough to put in backer rod under the new caulking, and apply new caulking. Which is how it should have been done in the first place.
Foam backer rod is available in multiple sizes and is ...
- 223k
15
votes
Accepted
Brand new bathroom fan appears to be spinning the wrong way
This is a centrifugal fan. The fan blades can be straight, curved towards spinning direction or against spinning direction. This will affect the noise level and efficiency of the fan, but the ...
- 1,944
15
votes
What does "attic access required" mean in the context of a bathroom exhaust fan?
For the panasonic fan I recently installed in my home, it means that the method of installation requires screws to be driven into a bracket on the top of the fan, on the attic side, after the fan is ...
- 490
14
votes
Accepted
How can I support a sagging double joist where the hanger was cut?
Move the water line. I realize that you don't want to, but you have to--if only a little. A small offset of a couple inches will allow you to fix the framing problem. Start with an elbow just below ...
- 144k
14
votes
Accepted
Optimal Bath Fan Location
The fan creates air flow through the bathroom. Air enters from somewhere, and exits through the fan to the outside. The entry point is usually the door but it might be a window if you generally ...
- 43.3k
12
votes
Accepted
Do you have to turn main water off when doing bathtub shower remodel
There may be shut off valves for the shower and tub in the wall that are accessible by an access panel on the other side of the wall. Or maybe in a basement, or a crawlspace, if your house is built ...
- 6,912
12
votes
How do I screw through a metal bathroom fan box to affix it to the joist?
Almost any wood screw.
It takes only say 3/4" of penetration into a joist to secure such a housing. Thread type doesn't much matter. Diameter doesn't, either, though thinner screws will go in ...
- 144k
12
votes
Is it a bad idea to install a bathroom vent in a drop ceiling without external exhaust?
The point of a bathroom exhaust fan is to pull humid air out of the bathroom. That humid air must go somewhere.
If that "somewhere" is another interior space, you're just moving the ...
- 986
11
votes
How concerning is this water in my bathroom?
I wouldn't worry too much about mold. I'd worry about the level under the bathroom and the subfloor eventually rotting out.
Yes toilet can leak underneath. Yes you can do it. First is to figure out ...
- 14.3k
10
votes
nail pop in bathroom ceiling
Just one nail is not a safety risk. There drywall is not supposed to be a barrier to water infiltration, so this popped nail will not risk water getting in. Watch out if you see water stains on the ...
- 8,502
10
votes
What is this bracket on the side of my shower called? I believe it may have held a soap dish
I would say it's a soap dish bracket. Here's one from Zoro that would probably utilize the same hole. Don't use the old bracket because rust will probably run down the wall. You can always just remove ...
- 83.5k
10
votes
Optimal Bath Fan Location
Given that you have ducting (hopefully 4” or bigger) and a hole in the ceiling, put the new one where the old one was.
There might be a fractional improvement pulling air right above the shower, but I ...
- 23.1k
9
votes
Will 42.5 in vanity fit in 42 in space?
Cultured marble can be cut with a diamond tile blade.
I have done it a number of times and it is easier than ripping out or trying to cut grooves in the drywall.
If possible cut outside, wear eye, ear ...
- 37.3k
9
votes
Prevent shower door from sliding open?
I have a very similar shower door system and I have some tips:
The stationary glass is holding up the center of the rod. You should check the levelness of the rod and if the center is not higher than ...
- 2,276
8
votes
How concerning is this water in my bathroom?
Is this a serious concern for mold underneath the toilet and flooring? Mold can live anywhere there is moisture, food, and the correct environmental conditions. You have provided all three. So yes, ...
- 2,385
8
votes
Accepted
How can I support a subfloor patch between joists?
It's really awkward to try and install framing to the trusses underneath, but that's not warranted. As long as all the joints are tied together properly it'll be solid.
Just float 2x4 blocking, and ...
- 144k
7
votes
How do I screw through a metal bathroom fan box to affix it to the joist?
There exist "self drilling" screws that have a hardened drill point for piloting their own holes through metal, but these tend to have threads that are too fine for grabbing onto wood ...
- 10.5k
7
votes
How concerning is this water in my bathroom?
Something is leaking. It could be a bathroom fitting, it could be something inside the walls,
it could be the roof!
Is this a serious concern for mold underneath the toilet and flooring?
It's worse ...
- 23.2k
7
votes
Should I place a shower on an inaccessible wall?
I would strongly urge following the contractor's recommendation.
If the shower is on an exterior wall:
The plumber could have to remove a lot of tile to find the source of the leak.
It could be ...
7
votes
Brand new bathroom fan appears to be spinning the wrong way
That's a shaded-pole motor. It generates a rotating magnetic field by "shading" part of the rotor poles with copper rings (ends visible beside the rotor and there should be a matching pair ...
- 1,077
7
votes
Diagonal Cracks in drywall at corner of 1 piece shower/tub - Serious?
This looks like a surface crack probably caused by tightening the shower curtain rod too tight. A taping job and light mud can crack with a concentrated pressure point like those shower rods cause if ...
- 83.5k
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