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Weird question: I put up some of those vertical track shelves and I like them but they are 3’ wide with the brackets about in inch in from the edges (since I wanted to keep them in studs and they exactly fit the size of the little stick out chunk of wall they are on) so they have a little sag in the middle with weight on them. I didn’t really want to put a third rail for the middle cause the placement of the middle stud would make it slightly off center on top of just looking kind of ugly with that many tracks on such a small chunk of wall. Would it be possible to just screw something on the bottom of the shelves (white melamine) to brace them and flatten them out? I actually have a stack of white melamine and/or particle board scraps because I ordered a used ladder style bookshelf online and it got totally busted in post in a way that made it unassembleable, but I was afraid the idea of sawing apart a particle board thing and screwing it to other stuff could just turn into a loving mess
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Oct 11, 2021 05:41
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I'm pretty sure I had a salt bridge in my water softener. I shoveled most of it out with a shovel and then poked around down there with a shovel to try and break it up. At this point I am just figuring on running it all the way out of salt and then putting some fresh salt in that I know won't clump up again/etc. But it's taking longer than expected - it's been down around the "0" mark on the column for a while. Can I just take a couple buckets of water and try to fill up the salt bin a little bit, then run a recharge cycle, or will having way too much water in it be a problem?
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Oct 11, 2021 22:54
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I'm looking for a piece of hardware that I'm pretty sure exists but don't know the name to find. I could build one myself but this is supposed to be a reference design and is also relatively price sensitive so custom fabrication is to be avoided. It would be a combination cam latch handle/rotary switch/interlock. The latch/switch would be mounted on a panel next to a door (that can't have any wiring on it). When the door is closed and latched, the switch is closed. When the door is not latched, the circuit is open. When the door is open the handle can't be turned and the circuit remains open. I've seen something similar on control cabinets where when you open the door it shuts off power to everything inside. A bit of a stretch: ideally the on/latched position would be un-latchable electronically (via solenoid?), so when a circuit inside loses power it unlatches and the door opens via spring. Essentially like an automated dishwasher I guess? (But no water, so no need for IP rating.) Close door, turn handle to latch and start cycle. Cycle finishes, handle returns to unlocked position, door opens. (No) rinse, and repeat. It only needs to switch 12v, so I don't need some gigantic industrial breaker. What is the name of the thing I want, and is there any chance I can get one for maybe $30-$50? I mocked up something out of a scrapped cabinet, a torsion spring, wire, and a micro-switch but I'd love to point at a catalog and say "buy this switch with these two options."
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Oct 12, 2021 04:20
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Dimensional lumber worked well for me and is more attractive than melamine in my opinion. Depending on the store around here it was quite cheap and of nice quality, with interesting grain patterns, but I live in a place with a lot of pine logging. Could throw some stain and varnish on it if you were feeling fancy. Or, if your shelves aren’t bowing very much, maybe a simple peg, almost invisible, at the back where the middle stud is would be enough to support it.
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Oct 13, 2021 05:44
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 I have been tasked with stripping the white paint from this fireplace to expose the brick underneath. I have never done anything like this before, can anyone recommend a method to proceed? From my research it seems there are a lot of different options but I have no idea how to determine which one is best here. I am leaning towards some kind of paste and peel but if anyone has experience they could share first that would be great. The brick is about 120 years old and while the overall brick pattern looks good, it does look like it could be a little messed up in places so I'm a bit wary of loving it up further. I have no idea if the paint is masonry paint or if the previous owners just slathered on plenty of coats of the regular wall paint they were using (the colour match to the surrounding walls is better than it looks in the image). Please also feel free to tell me if you think this is a terrible idea!
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Oct 13, 2021 16:28
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Could I get a quick sanity check on this estimate for gutter installation: There are no old gutters to remove. The old fascia is rotten and needs to be removed and replaced with a 1x10 pvc fascia. There is 90 ft of new aluminum gutter and 2 downspouts. Estimate is $5,400 USD total. Every contractor I've worked with before has been "guy that a family member knows who gets mad if you ask if they're insured and licensed", so my sense of price is way way off. Is that a reasonable price?
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Oct 13, 2021 19:03
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Serenade posted:Could I get a quick sanity check on this estimate for gutter installation: 90ft total? For just plain gutters? That seems insane to me, we went with a "premium" "gutter system" (gutter max) that was out the rear end expensive cause we have tons of huge trees and I didn't want to deal with constant leaf and nut battles. I wish I could remember how many linear feet but my guess is 225-250', they also had to install and paint fascia, because we have raftertails. It was around $6,200, and I was able to talk the annoying super high pressure sales guy down over 1k too, (in retrospect I think I could have gone lower) this was almost two years ago though, so with how everything has gone to poo poo.  Some of the quotes I got for plain gutters at the time where between $800-1200.
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Oct 13, 2021 19:36
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Rakeris posted:90ft total? For just plain gutters? That seems insane to me, we went with a "premium" "gutter system" (gutter max) that was out the rear end expensive cause we have tons of huge trees and I didn't want to deal with constant leaf and nut battles. I wish I could remember how many linear feet but my guess is 225-250', they also had to install and paint fascia, because we have raftertails. It's a gable roof, so it's only on the two flat sides which are about 45 feet long each. I think the money's going into the fascia which is totally rotted from having no gutters for decades (and why I put off getting new ones for so long.)
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Oct 13, 2021 20:28
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Dude we got a new fascia and gutters on 80' and it cost $2300 at peak covid. DC area. Keep shopping.
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Oct 14, 2021 00:32
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Alright then, I will continue hunting. Thank you two for the answers.
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Oct 14, 2021 00:50
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Not sure if there's a better thread, but I got a catalytic propane heater for free because the previous owner couldn't get it to work. I'm not sure if it's just because of storage or what but when I look at it, it seems pretty loving filthy, and I know these things need to be clean. Is there any guide to cleaning one of these? I'm at an elevation where some catalytic heaters have issues but not 100% of the time. It's an old (like '70s wood paneling) Rinnai Tropic heater, the size of a '90s TV except not as deep as a CRT.
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Oct 15, 2021 05:37
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How serious are they when the ceiling fan instructions say not to connect the fan or lights to a dimmer? I’m replacing a pair of old fans controlled with dimmers and I kinda like it, I’d rather not have to use the remote control that these new ones come with.
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Oct 15, 2021 21:22
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The blower fan in my Traeger Silverton 620 pellet grill died last week. I yanked out the old one and it's this one here: https://pellet-stove-parts-4less.com/collections/traeger-silverton-620/products/traeger-dc-fan-motor-kit0411. $80 seemed awfully expensive for what looks like a PC case fan, so I started searching the model/serial (NMB 11925SA-12R-BU). The sticker on the fan says it's 12V DC 0.86A. I was able to find a 11925SA-12R-EU on Digikey for $17 that looks identical except it says it's 0.62A. Oddly, NMBs website doesn't list either model, just this one which appears to only be 2wire? I'm not electronically inclined, will the .62A fan work for me if the original one was 0.86 or will the fan immediately fry or something? I'm hoping it's just a generational thing and the original -BU model has been replaced by the -EU?
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Oct 15, 2021 21:47
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The Royal Nonesuch posted:The blower fan in my Traeger Silverton 620 pellet grill died last week. I yanked out the old one and it's this one here: https://pellet-stove-parts-4less.com/collections/traeger-silverton-620/products/traeger-dc-fan-motor-kit0411. $80 seemed awfully expensive for what looks like a PC case fan, so I started searching the model/serial (NMB 11925SA-12R-BU). The sticker on the fan says it's 12V DC 0.86A. Going lower in amperage is fine in an electrical sense - going higher amperage could over-strain the chips used to step down the voltage to drive it. The question is whether the fan has the same airflow volume and static pressure - a higher amperage fan may be just more powerful in general. If the new one is less powerful, that may mess with the programmed feed rates, as it will be feeding fuel with the expectation of a certain rate of combustion and if this fan is feeding less air then the rate of combustion may be slower. Maybe the PID loop is in the controller is enough to handle that, though? Depending on how old it is, the "EU" suffix may imply that at some point Traeger went to a RoHS compliant fan (no lead solder/etc), or that is the EU compliant version of the one Traeger uses. If it's really old, they also may have improved the efficiency of the motor since then, newer fans tend to be brushless/etc which improves efficiency a lot over the older ones and that would reduce the current used for a given amount of air. So it's possible it does move the same amount of air. It probably will be fine, just saying there's a possibility it's a little bit different. Paul MaudDib fucked around with this message at 22:10 on Oct 15, 2021 |
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Oct 15, 2021 22:05
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Interesting, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks! The grill isn't old so I doubt the fan is; I bought it new earlier this year but it's a Costco-exclusive model so they might sit in the warehouses for awhile. I did try to find a spec sheet for the old -BU fan to compare the cfm with the newer one, but my googles turned up empty. Both the -EU model and the similar 2-wire model list identical cfm and static pressures, so that family of fans seems pretty consistent. For the price difference I think it's definitely worth a try and if the cook temp/time is wildly off I'll pony up and get the expensive one from the grill site. edit: I crossposted in AI since I post there mostly, and someone pointed out the fan is available directly from Traeger for $45, which is what I get for assuming it would be unavailable or $80 from them too. He also suggested the -EU denoted a difference in fan housing shape according to the NMB part number chart https://nmbtc.com/fan-part-numbering-system/. Still think I might try the $17 option first. The Royal Nonesuch fucked around with this message at 22:42 on Oct 15, 2021 |
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Oct 15, 2021 22:25
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That seems like the sort of thing that would be covered under warranty, doubly so if you got it at Costco.
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Oct 15, 2021 23:02
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jackpot posted:How serious are they when the ceiling fan instructions say not to connect the fan or lights to a dimmer? I’m replacing a pair of old fans controlled with dimmers and I kinda like it, I’d rather not have to use the remote control that these new ones come with. For the fan very, for the lights is it an integrated led light? If so, it's not dimmable and won't work. If you put bulbs in sockets I don't see why it would care. Buy a fan speed controller if you want dimmable fans. Or buy a remote controlled fan and use that.
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Oct 16, 2021 00:24
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I have a Costco... Hunter? ceiling fan connected to a 3-speed switch and the LED to the dimmer and left the remote control disconnected.
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Oct 16, 2021 00:37
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Wanderless posted:That seems like the sort of thing that would be covered under warranty, doubly so if you got it at Costco. Yeah I mean, I'm sure it is but it was one of those traveling vendor booth type deals, it's not something Costco stocks normally. If I could haul it back and get a brand new unit same day it would be worth the hassle. I could contact Traeger but my receipt is long gone. Spending ~$20 on a fan shipped to my door is probably the wiser time/money solution at this point.
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Oct 16, 2021 01:00
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I've got some of that plastic film that you put over a window to improve insulation and you're supposed to heat it to get a solid seal but I don't have a hair dryer. Would a heat gun set to low work or would that be likely to melt it? I guess I can start with it pretty far away and move it closer until it starts to work? I'm living in a camper in what might technically be an arctic climate and while the work I've been putting into insulating it has made a world of difference I want to be as thorough as possible because my heating bill will skyrocket when it gets down into single digits unless I do everything I can. I've already put 1 or 2 inch foam board insulation over every window that I don't use (mostly the ones facing my crazy neighbor who shouts slurs at the top of his lungs all hours of the night) and in the skylights.
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Oct 16, 2021 02:51
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Yes, a heat gun will work. I hated doing that as a kid at my grandparents. E: part of it is having airspace between the film and the windows so it forms a bubble of trapped air. It won't be effective if the film is laying on the window. I'm assuming windows in your RV don't have the most protruding frames. It's already getting into the low teens in the early morning down in the SLV. CRUSTY MINGE fucked around with this message at 03:00 on Oct 16, 2021 |
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Oct 16, 2021 02:56
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Is there a thread for discussing replacing carpet? Had a washing machine leak and we are going to replace the carpet in our house and just wanted to know what things to look for. Types of carpet, material it's made of and stain resistance, that kinda stuff.
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Oct 17, 2021 15:14
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The Royal Nonesuch posted:Interesting, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks! The grill isn't old so I doubt the fan is; I bought it new earlier this year but it's a Costco-exclusive model so they might sit in the warehouses for awhile. I did try to find a spec sheet for the old -BU fan to compare the cfm with the newer one, but my googles turned up empty. Both the -EU model and the similar 2-wire model list identical cfm and static pressures, so that family of fans seems pretty consistent. For the price difference I think it's definitely worth a try and if the cook temp/time is wildly off I'll pony up and get the expensive one from the grill site. The difference is amperage could also simply be that one is listing the initial start-up amperage (FLA), while the spec sheet is listing the average operating amperage. Either way, it's probably fine, with the caveats that Paul listed.
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Oct 18, 2021 08:27
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H110Hawk posted:For the fan very, for the lights is it an integrated led light? If so, it's not dimmable and won't work. If you put bulbs in sockets I don't see why it would care.
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Oct 18, 2021 14:32
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I have an old programmable thermostat that is running through batteries very quickly. It is hard wired, so I believe the battery is just a backup, so I'm thinking maybe the wires aren't supplying power anymore. I have looked at the back of it and the wires appear to be hooked up. How would I check if there is (the correct) amount of current running through them? Would one of those no touch voltage testers be sufficient, or would that only tell me that there is something there? Do I need a multimeter (and if so what exactly am I doing with it)? Lastly, if it just turns out that the thermostat is on it's last legs, recommendations for a replacement that doesn't hook up to the cloud or have a bunch of sensors? After being in software for a while, I'm pretty anti-smarthome.
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Oct 18, 2021 21:52
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Unless this is one of those weird setups where the thermostat is directly switching actual mains voltage, a no-contact tester won't tell you anything useful because HVAC thermostats run on 24 volts. I wouldn't expect the tester to respond and even if it does, that's not going to indicate much. What's the make/model of the thermostat? If it's truly old then it probably doesn't rely on voltage on the terminals at all and the battery is the only power it expects to operate from. Continuous power consumption at the thermostat wasn't really a common thing before smart thermostats like the Nest came along.
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Oct 18, 2021 21:58
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It's a Honeywell MagicStat CT3200. Now that you mention it, it does appear to be battery powered. Any obvious reason it would be using up a battery in <1 month (after previously working for 3+ years on the same one) with no real usage changes? I guess there was some battery corrosion on the terminals that I cleaned off with vinegar the last time I changed the battery (since it was completely dead and putting a new battery in didn't change that). That definitely could be the issue here. Grumpwagon fucked around with this message at 22:13 on Oct 18, 2021 |
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Oct 18, 2021 22:11
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Yeah, reading the manual for that thermostat they specifically tell you not to connect the C wire to it. The batteries are its only source of electricity. If it's going through batteries that quickly I'd thoroughly clean the terminals. Failing that, unless you're up for disassembling the thermostat and fixing it, I'd just replace it.
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Oct 19, 2021 00:47
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Grumpwagon posted:It's a Honeywell MagicStat CT3200. Now that you mention it, it does appear to be battery powered. Any obvious reason it would be using up a battery in <1 month (after previously working for 3+ years on the same one) with no real usage changes? If you want to replace it just buy whatever honeywell is selling for $20-30. It won't have cloud anything. If you have a multimeter set it to AC-Volts (V~) and connect it to R and C or RC and C. Should say 24ish. If you want to own a multimeter, I'm a fan of whatever Extech is selling for around $45. I have a MN36.
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Oct 19, 2021 01:40
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Excellent, thanks for the help guys. I cleaned the contacts really thoroughly last time, so I swapped the batteries again and if it dies quickly again, time for a replacement probably. Appreciate the multimeter recommendation as well.
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Oct 19, 2021 13:31
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My ~10 year old window AC unit started making an intermittent bloodcurdling screech over the past few days. It sounds like a squealing belt on a car. Comes and goes with no warning, no matter what setting it's on. Other than that, it works fine and cools just like it always has. It's probably time to buy a new one, but it'd be great if I could get 2 more weeks out of this one before I take it out for the winter. Is there anything I should try? I've jiggled and jostled everything I can, but I haven't taken anything apart yet.
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Oct 20, 2021 01:17
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Probably fan bearing or blades or something along those lines. Probably not going to fix it easily / get parts but you can try and open it up.
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Oct 20, 2021 02:12
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If you literally need 2 weeks you could lube whatever is screeching with canola oil or whatever you have on hand. Motor oil, grease, literally anything to try and make it slip. Thicker is better.
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Oct 20, 2021 03:18
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I’m in the market for a Dremel. Is there a recommendation for best bang/buck kit and model number to buy? Are there kits/models to definitely avoid/definitely buy? Places where it’s worth/not worth spending the money? Upgrades worth paying extra for? Models to avoid/ignore? Are the cordless models good? Better than corded? The freedom of being able to use it in the yard or field to quickly carve/sand/cut/etc would actually be rather useful to me, as one of my intended uses is for bonsai. Aside from bonsai, my plan is to use it for a lot of stuff across multiple hobby/home/general use situations. I do tankscaping, occasional model and diorama building, I have to cut and drill and shape the occasional piece of wood or pvc tube, and so forth. I live in an apartment and have zero power tools, so having something that can decently perform multiple roles and potentially be adapted to do some drilling, drill press stuff, routing, etc maybe with the right attachment would be great. TLDR- I’m willing to pay more for a higher end model if it comes with worthwhile benefits in terms of flexibility/etc, but I also don’t want to pay massively more for something with the latest and greatest if it’s not worth the extra cost vs a more barebones model. I also don’t want to invest extra in attachments, etc (or the potential to use attachments) that won’t do a worthwhile job, but I would if they’re decent/passable enough for the occasional project. Would love suggestions for best corded+best cordless models to consider.
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Oct 21, 2021 13:05
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My car's (2003 Honda Civic) roof is leaking, and water's getting into the cabin via the rear view mirror mount. What should I do about this?
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Oct 22, 2021 01:57
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:My car's (2003 Honda Civic) roof is leaking, and water's getting into the cabin via the rear view mirror mount. What should I do about this? I would recommend the AI Stupid Question thread. Maybe your windshield seal is failing above the mirror mount. Or maybe it's actually a hole in your roof that's leaking into the mount (rust hole?). So depending on where it's actually coming from. Pictures could help.
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Oct 22, 2021 02:01
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:My car's (2003 Honda Civic) roof is leaking, and water's getting into the cabin via the rear view mirror mount. What should I do about this? Here's the link to the aforementioned thread https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3699520
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Oct 22, 2021 02:15
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Take it to a windshield specialist and have them reseal it. Shouldn't be more than an hour of work, they'll remove it, clean the edges, strip off the old sealant, apply new sealant and set it back in place. Maybe $100-200 to have it done right, depending on how shady the windshield place is. I would stay away from places like Safelite. Just google a local windshield company, almost any of them will be cheaper and it's not difficult work, just takes a little time and you'll have masking tape "holding" the windshield in place for a day that won't hurt the paint. Just don't drive fast with the windows down after, air pressure and it being the rear window. /\ or that thread
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Oct 22, 2021 02:21
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CRUSTY MINGE posted:Take it to a windshield specialist and have them reseal it. Shouldn't be more than an hour of work, they'll remove it, clean the edges, strip off the old sealant, apply new sealant and set it back in place. Maybe $100-200 to have it done right, depending on how shady the windshield place is. On that note, I've found local places sometime in not the best places will do the same if not better work than national places like Safelite. Don't be afraid to negotiate, if you call them and they quote you remotely what Safelite charges call them on their poo poo and offer them half the price. My wife's 2017 Rav4 needed a new windshield, Safelite said 380+350 for calibration of fancy sensor poo poo. Called around an had a local place do it for 300 and calibrate it for free, if your car has any ADAS it will sometimes need to be recalibrated with a new windshield.
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Oct 22, 2021 03:23
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Safelite is to auto glass what AAMCO is to transmissions. I wouldn't trust either to do their jobs without some kind of gently caress up along the way (especially AAMCO).
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Oct 22, 2021 03:33
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