21
If you consider the physics of this, the B wedge is going to apply more outward force on the cleat attached to the wall then the A wedge for a given amount of weight supported. So you might cause the attachment to the wall to fail long before you would be reaching the capacity of the bolt's shear limit.
Generally a relatively shallow angle will give you all ...
17
Here is my invention for you.
It is a board. The pliers and snips that volunteered for this project straddled it nicely. If you cut off the ends of the board and reattached them at right angles (with glue or a screw) so it looks like a letter I it would be steadier than this one, which was propped on the 2x4 back there.
The little red pliers did not ...
17
How about something like this?
https://www.amazon.com/Olsa-Tools-Pliers-Organizer-Storage/dp/B01M27BV34
If you want more ideas then run a Google search for "plier rack"
14
The problem is you are using office supply organizers for tools.
Try hitting one of the Borgs (Home Depot, Lowes or Menards) and visit their tool section. They should have plenty of tool organizers. Be warned: they won't work very well on office supplies.
answered Jul 28 '19 at 4:06
Harper - Reinstate Monica
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14
You say hanging them on a wall is acceptable. In that case:
Put them against the wall.
Grab one at your nearest toolshop or hardware store or make one yourself. All you need is a piece of metal/wood, stick it to a wall and put screws, nails, clips or other objects in it to hang your tools on. The boards with pre-fab holes in them are pegboards.
11
My suggestion is that you consider installing a ready made plug strip across the back of the work bench. These can be purchased from many suppliers and come with an already attached heavy duty power cord that you can attach to the home outlet. Here is an example of what I am suggesting:
Let me also make another suggestion (coming from an experienced ...
9
I prefer the "up and over" method rather than drilling thru the studs, esp. since you don't intend to finish the walls. Not sure what code says about that. I believe that exposed cable below a certain height needs to be protected (8 feet?) So that would mean running the cable in conduit for the 4-5' from the outlet to near the top plate.
When I ...
8
That is a big piece of wood. There are three obvious approaches:
Get some professionals to do it. A grand piano weighs more than that (and is more awkwardly shaped). Professionals will have the experience and equipment to do it safely, and the indemnity insurance to pay if anything gets damaged.
Slide it gently down the stairs (possibly manufacturing a ...
8
Yeah, that's wrong. The inspector ought to know better; clearly does not inspect a whole lot of commercial installations.
Gently stand up on the point and show him the code, and leave him a path to keep his ego intact (that is less than you pulling a bunch of pointless ground wires). That's part of negotiating.
By the way, if you do pull the trigger on ...
answered Oct 23 '20 at 14:43
Harper - Reinstate Monica
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7
I use a grey foam block like is typically used for packing or cut out in shape for instrumentation cases:
I use an X-Acto knife to cut out slots for the heads of the tools that roughly contour the shape of the head, but slightly smaller for a snug fit:
This provides immediate access to my most commonly used tools, with each tool having it's own location to ...
6
I would get a board (of ply or similar) and lay out the pliers etc in a sensible arrangement. Then insert a screw for each tool so that the tool sits on the screw by its hinge when the board is vertical.
Probably cheaper than buying a board that may be larger than what you need...
You could also add elastic across the handles and make it so the board is ...
6
Mains wiring is dangerous
You're not allowed to just barf a bunch of wires and call it done. The fan, I assume you scrounged this from an old air conditioner, is made to fit inside a housing, which you have removed. You need to head off to the metal press to restore two key functions of the housing: Physical protection from fan blades, and electrical ...
answered Feb 3 '20 at 20:47
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6
Lights on their own breaker is good.
One breaker per wall is dubious. If you alternate the breakers feeding outlets there's a bit more wire, but when you are working in an area and plug two things into adjacent outlets, less chance of a trip. Or, use dual-gang plates/boxes and put the two duplex outlets in each box on different breakers. You can use ...
6
My imperfect grasp of physics would tell me that the strength would be equal in both cases, however, B is more likely to jam & be hard to remove later.
The downward force is equal in both cases, the adhesion/grip force will be greater in B.
There's potentially a leverage force also in B, but my high-school physics says that will be too small to come into ...
5
If you have the space, a freestanding workbench away from the wall is a great thing to have. It is much easier to move your body around the bench and workpiece than to rotate the workpiece, particularly when you would rather not disturb its position. You can make it strong with heavy construction (big strong legs).
The drawback is the same as with any ...
5
Here's yet another tools-on-the-wall idea. This is light gauge galvanized sheet metal -- probably 24 ga from the HVAC duct aisle at the local big box store. The non-magnetic tools (flux pens, tweezers, etc) have a magnet bonded to them with epoxy; the magnetic tools have a magnet epoxied to the steel sheet instead.
5
This is fine, provided you obey a few rules
While a MWBC serving a mix of 120V and 240V receptacles certainly may look strange to the uninitiated, or those who interact with electrical systems in a professional capacity yet are not trained to the full panoply of NEC requirements, this setup is Code-legal in the 2017 NEC, provided the breaker protecting it ...
5
For line voltage (120/240 - all 120V to ground, so basically the same voltage from a code perspective) you don't need a divider. A divider is needed when you have low voltage (network/TV/phone) sharing with line voltage.
Unless you are sticking in a 240/120 receptacle (like an L14-20) you'll only have one neutral, so @manassehkatz-Moving 2 Codidact's concern ...
5
I don't know that the strength really lies in the angle. If I were picking, I'd go with X over Y, but because you don't want to create too much of a wedge between the cleat and the wall (Y will put more stress on the cleat fasteners). The bevel helps it not slide off the cleat.
The main advantage of the cleat is you can mount a board to the wall in a secure ...
4
Your question is a little broad, but I will interpret it to be something like "Can I use LED lighting sources to illuminate my workbench and desk?"
Yes. While the purchase price of LEDs is still much higher than conventional bulbs or CFLs, the prices are dropping and you often can find sales. There are 75 watt led flood bulbs now available in the $20 range, ...
4
Locking the breaker is certainly an option (probably a good one). I would consider it a hassle to have to unlock the breaker before work and having to relock when done. However, I'd rather do that than have my child lose a finger.
In addition to shielding our children from things it is important that we teach them to respect the shop area and to respect ...
4
400A boxes
400A panels are expensive because nobody does that. The normal thing to do with a 400A meter is immediately split it to two 200A main panels, just ordinary common-as-dirt main panels, nothing fancy at all. In fact, ordinary/common "class 320" (read: 400A) meter pans provide for two 4/0-sized lugs per phase. That's not for paralleling: ...
answered Aug 14 '20 at 3:19
Harper - Reinstate Monica
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3
There is a great video on YouTube by "The Build Show" about various PEX and push to connect fittings. They pump them up until they burst. They burst well above the stated ratings. Unfortunately I can't answer the nylon pipe question but check out the video
The Build Show with Matt Risinger 14,000 PSI test
I temporarily installed PEX Airlines and PEX oil ...
3
ESPECIALLY with mostly gas appliances, I wouldn't worry about it. I have a small woodworking shop that I feed with a 60A feeder breaker and I have NEVER tripped it. What you have to remember is that if it's just YOU working in the shop, you are not going to be running more than one tool at a time, plus maybe a dust collector (highly recommended by the way) ...
3
I ran a small shop on 60 amps for many years. Unless you're running welders, large compressors or other big electric motors (5+ HP) you shouldn't have any trouble. Even with my 13 amp table saw, dust collector and the random chargers and stuff I have plugged in I never tripped the main. Can't imagine fridges and A/C could account for more than 50 amps
3
I would not consider this solution inexpensive, but not bad compared to hospital bills. There are devices known as circuit breaker lockouts:
A number of sources exist on the internet, with varying prices starting from slightly under US$20. I used the search terms "universal circuit breaker lockout" to find representative samples.
The more economical ...
3
The type of cable you linked to is SE cable covered by Article 338 of the National Electrical Code. It connot be used underground with or without a raceway. Here is the pertinent code language.
338.12 Uses Not Permitted.
(A) Service-Entrance Cable. Service-entrance cable (SE) shall not be used under the following conditions or in the following locations:
(1)...
3
Typical is a wall rack with holes in which one part of the handle is inserted. Wooden home-made or wire/plastic for pegboard mounting purchased. If you want it on the desktop rather than wall-mounted, then a stand supporting a board which has holes drilled along the edges.
Some results (unlike those) I have not seen in person show up when I put "plier rack"...
3
It looks like there's a window behind the desk but you mention a wall so as others have mentioned, a pegboard is a cheap and simple solution. Make sure you mount it with spacers behind it so that you can actually get the accessories in. These 'plier holders' are perfect for this:
They are less than a dollar each. The tool goes in business-side down.
If ...
3
This isn't really possible. First of all, almost all AC fan motors that I have seen are 240v, not 120v, so a common plug and common electrical outlet will not work.
Even if it is 120v, that diagram shows that it requires a run capacitor (CAP). That capacitor will need to be wired onto the cord, and will need to be protected by a box of some sort to ...
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