Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [damage]

168 questions
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13 answers

Protecting solar panels from kids who may throw stones to get monkeys off roof

I have read this question - Solar panels and hail and my question is similar. I have the possibility that neighboring kids may throw stones at my roof top solar panels to scare off monkeys which are a local pest. What protection measures I can take…
user56677
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5 answers

Do studs in wooden buildings eventually get replaced as they lose their structural capacity?

I'm living in a 30 years old building made of wood - an ordinary apartment complex in Seattle. As I was drilling a hole into a stud, a thought occurred to me - over the years, these studs have probably seen hundreds if not thousands of things…
JonathanReez
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Moisture leaking out of chip in floor tile

I dropped something heavy and mildly pointed onto the bathroom floor. The Bathroom is tiled with ~30cm square black "slate like" tiles, but where I dropped this thing, the surface has been badly (2-3 cm radius, ?1-2mm deep?) chipped, and underneath…
Brondahl
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Is there an NEC-compliant method of repairing minor damage to electrical wire insulation without a junction box?

While trying to pry loose a stubborn cable staple that fastens a 14-gauge electrical cable to a stud, I accidentally tore a very small hole through both the outer jacket and the insulation around the neutral wire, exposing the bare conductor inside.…
oscilatingcretin
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I think my electrician compromised a loadbearing stud

I contracted a company to remove a closet partitioning wall along with a header and a few small pieces. That work was all approved by a structural engineer in an official report. However, I was also having the company install a power outlet in the…
Kyle
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1 answer

Can you identify the source of these grooves/notches on the edge of the deck?

I have a nice new PVC deck ... BUT, these strange notches/grooves have begun to show up on the outside edge of the darker colored border plank. These were NOT here when the deck was first installed. After the first one appeared, I thought it might…
highbandwidth
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How can I repair a towel rack that was ripped out of the wall?

The towel rod has been ripped out of the wall. It looks like it was attached to the wall by two dry wall anchors which were not attached to the stud. Basically a very junky installation in my opinion. I would appreciate any advice on how I can go…
user9091
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Is ivy bad for your walls?

We have a front wall covered by ivy. We do like it very much, but keep getting remarks that ivy eventually destroys your wall. My usual response is that you often see ivy on century-old buildings and those seem to have survived all right. So my…
Andra
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How can I repair alkaline etching on a solid surface counter?

A regular alkaline AA battery apparently leaked on our Caesar-stone (similar to Silestone) island counter top. If this is indeed the case, it has been left there for several weeks. It left a battery sized bleached area. It feels very slightly…
Eli Iser
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Is wiring with melted insulation and exposed copper dangerous?

A plumber has melted the grey sleeve on a two core electrical cable in our kitchen whilst soldering a joint on an adjacent copper pipe. I can see exposed copper through a small hole the cable sleeve. This hole is approx 1cm in length. The cable is…
user68231
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5 answers

Electric Bill Serious Spike (Possible Wire Damage)

my brother and I recently started a project to build a patio over a jacuzzi to protect it from snow, and this requires drilling holes in concrete for anchor bolts for the posts. After we started, the next electric bill he received was around 600%…
Tai
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How do I remove (food) oil stain from a wood table?

Spilled some oily salad dressing on a wood table that was not varnished or sealed in any way. Not sure the type of wood - it almost looks like teak, but I don't believe it is. We used water on the spill right away, but some of the oil seeped into…
3rdparty
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How do I repair spots of damaged hardwood floor finish?

I have some hardwood floors that I refinished 5 years or so ago. They're mostly holding up pretty well, but around our breakfast bar the stools have taken up some of the varathane and have left damaged (scuffed and peeling) spots. Are there…
cori
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Damaged wire while drilling wall caused power to go out. How to fix it properly?

I managed to damage two wires/cables: tv/internet and a power wire. There were three of power wires: a blue, a black and a green/yellow. I've damaged the black one, but just a little bit. When the drill hit it, the power went out. I used a…
mnib
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Can hail-damaged shingles be repaired, or should they be replaced?

We had a nasty hail storm recently and while none of the shingles are pierced or broken there is extensive damage to the top layer but so far we had no indication that the roof is leaking. Based on the attached images of typical damage: Could this…
Dean Kuga
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