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1500 questions
26
votes
1 answer

How do you trigger the HVAC with wiring only?

I have a HVAC that has the usually wiring C R G W Y Pinouts What wires do I need to connect to turn on Heating? What wires do I need to connect to turn on the A/C? Is there a risk of damaging any circuitry in doing this? Is there a way of finding…
Ashitakalax
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26
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10 answers

Can I replace a 30A breaker with a 40A breaker for a new water heater?

I have a 30 amp circuit breaker installed for my tank type hot water heater. I would like to replace the hot water heater with a tankless hot water heater that requires a 40 amp circuit breaker. I don’t know the gauge of wiring used for the…
Robert Cole
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26
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3 answers

Why should we replace smoke alarms every 10 years?

I'm having a hard time understanding a requirement to replace smoke detectors every 10 years (or whatever the manufacturer suggests). With previous generations of ionization based detectors, I understand that the radioactive substance would decay…
dannosaur
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26
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5 answers

What should be done before using a fireplace that has not been used in decades?

We are moving into a house with a fire-place. The current tenants (friends of ours), have been living there just short of 2 decades, and have never used it once. The house is about 90 years old, so it certainly saw a lot of use once upon a time. I…
Frames Catherine White
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26
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3 answers

Do I really need a special bulb in the oven?

My oven light burnt out recently. After dismantling it I found a 40W 130V "appliance" bulb with a standard Edison connector. The bulb is slightly smaller than a normal incandescent bulb. Looking for replacements at the local stores, all the…
cabbey
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26
votes
12 answers

Is it bad to turn off the water while on vacation?

I'm a little OCD when it comes to traveling. I have learned from experience that when I am away, I constantly have visions that a pipe in the wall had burst and that the water is slowly filling the house. Having been through this enough times, I am…
T James
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26
votes
8 answers

How do I run cable through my ceiling?

I have a cable that I need to run through the ceiling. I'd like to go under the floor, but I have a split level house, and this is the lower floor, so I don't believe there is room in the bottom half of the wall to run cable. Here's the situation in…
Chris Sobolewski
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25
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4 answers

I added insulation to my attic rafters, but should I have left room for airflow?

I added insulation to my attic rafters and plugged the space between the outdoors and my attic with insulation. It lowered my heating bill by $150/month, but I've seen some information that I may have made a mistake by cutting off the airflow in my…
ristonj
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25
votes
3 answers

Is running ethernet cable through an air return allowed under US code?

I'm looking to wire up the second floor of my house and the cold air return provides a convenient, straight run from the office to the utility room. Is it safe and within code to run ethernet cable in the air return? The air returns are not metal…
Freiheit
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25
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6 answers

Can a toilet get "too old" to the point where it can never be unclogged and must be replaced?

We had an issue where a toilet that worked fine since we moved in 6 years ago recently would not flush. I took a plunger to it and snaked from the roof and it helped in that the toilet would slowly drain out (15 seconds) but never give that typical…
Niles
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25
votes
2 answers

How can I get rid of ants in an environmently friendly way?

Is it enough to pour boiling water in their mount?
txwikinger
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25
votes
4 answers

Why would two circuit breakers be connected inside the service panel?

I was trying to locate the circuit breaker for an outlet in my garage and found a truly baffling setup. Two breakers control the same outlet (both plugs). After some head scratching, I opened the breaker box and found (see pic) breaker 4 (20 amp)…
John Miele
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25
votes
7 answers

What are framing dimensions like in the metric world?

I was always curious about this. In the states we have: Lumber - Comes most commonly in 2 inch (2x4,6,8,10,12,16) and 4 inch (4x4,4x6) varieties. Plywood - Almost always 4x8 feet Drywall/Plasterboard - Various 4 foot varieties (4x8,10,12) and…
Eric Petroelje
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25
votes
7 answers

Is this two-110-to-one-220 adaptor as fire-hazard as it looks?

I was browsing amazon and found this strange extension cord that takes two 110v circuits and combines them into one 220v circuit. I vaguely understand how two outlets can be on a different circuit/phase, but this still intuitively seems very 'fire…
Sidney
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25
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16 answers

Should drywall be hung horizontally or vertically?

For reasons including time, money, ease of installation, and structural strength, should drywall be installed horizontally or vertically.
DMoore
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