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Has anybody used shrinkwrap or 3M's product to insulate their windows? My apartment's windows are all single glaze and the freezing-cold glass is cooling the air next to it creating this feeling of a cold draft. I've heard a lot about simply using household shrinkwrap to cover up windows and that will help. Opinions?
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Jan 27, 2009 04:29
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 It's just the guts of a Wagner heat gun which seems to use a standard type nichrome wire heating element. I want more control over the temperature in the low range than the panel will give me. My guess is that the temperature and fan speed controls are just current limiting resistors, which means that I can swap them out for appropriately sized potentiometers. The only thing I can think of to test my hypothesis is to just strip the insulation and measure to see if the resistance changes with different settings. Will I run into any problems?
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Jan 27, 2009 06:40
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Aside from the fact that your heat gun can apparently run at 1,350 times the wattage most potentiometers are rated to withstand, you are good to go!
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Jan 28, 2009 05:06
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ZeeBoi posted:Has anybody used shrinkwrap or 3M's product to insulate their windows? My apartment's windows are all single glaze and the freezing-cold glass is cooling the air next to it creating this feeling of a cold draft. Air that is trapped is a pretty drat good form of insulation, so putting any form of shrink wrap over your windows will definitely help. Just make sure it's sealed incredibly well, because if it's not, the temperature difference will cause differences of pressure, and air will definitely cycle, making it pretty much useless.
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Jan 28, 2009 05:11
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ZeeBoi posted:Has anybody used shrinkwrap or 3M's product to insulate their windows? My apartment's windows are all single glaze and the freezing-cold glass is cooling the air next to it creating this feeling of a cold draft. This will work if done properly. Don't stick shrinkwrap to your window, create secondary glazing by putting a layer of shrinkwrap over the window aperature.
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Jan 28, 2009 20:07
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When you cover your windows, just be conscious of where and how you're adhering it around the window. Did this in a rented college house once, and I'm sure it saved us several hundred dollars. When we took it off in the spring it pulled some of the finish from the window trim. It wasn't noticed when we moved out, but if it had been my house it would have bothered me.
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Jan 29, 2009 17:48
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I need to store a whole bunch of crap (mostly books/magazines, but some other stuff as well) and take them to my building's basement for storage until we decide what to do with them. What would be the best way of making sure they are not completely ruined by dirt/humidity? I was thinking putting the books in cardboard boxes and tape them shut (duh), but should I take any extra steps? (I don't know, like putting reynolds wrap around the box or something?).
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Jan 29, 2009 20:54
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I'd line the cardboard boxes with garbage bags, and tightly zip tie the opening shut to keep humidity out.
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Jan 29, 2009 21:04
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Adding some silica gel packets (the ones that remove moisture) would help if you really want to remove humidity concerns.
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Jan 29, 2009 21:13
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It's more of an "extra precaution" than a real fear, there have been some boxes choke full of books down there for some time and the books are mostly fine (humidity-wise), but one of them has opened up (I think the tape used to close it dried up) and now the books are coated with dirt. The garbage bag inside the box is a good idea, I'll probably go with that and see if I can find a place to buy silica gel around here. Thanks to both of you, if anybody thinks of anything else, please let me know.
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Jan 29, 2009 21:22
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I'll just ad that for storing clothing, I make my own vacumn space bag thing with a shop vack and garbage bags+ zip ties. Also as an alternative to cardboard boxes, I bought a ton of those 6$ plastic bins they have at walmart. I think they are like 40 gallons or something, and pretty much indestructible. Great for moving.
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Jan 29, 2009 21:58
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I don't see a thread for fancy things you can do with a wall faceplate and some wiring. I just closed on my first house and i've got some mooolah to spend on some upgrades.  Things I'm kinda thinking: RCA x 3 (left, right, video) Ethernet x 2 (open access and intranet) 1/4'' Audio HDMI RJ-11 USB Host SVGA Coax db-9 serial On another plate: Air Compressor Multichoice Soda Gun I can run a lot of that through cat-5 cable, such as the HDMI, db-9, RCA, 1/4'' audio, rj-11. The actual RJ-45 ports would be AWESOME if they could have link and activity lights and if at all possible... a pingable ip address. Anyone got a good cache of people brainstorming this kinda poo poo? I'm still daydreamin. I'm having trouble finding that kind of 'smartjack' for ethernet. Theres gotta be power too! Maybe something with a small breaker in the jack itself. Considering dedicating the top jacks in each room to a UPS.... Thoughts? Peter Ugsly fucked around with this message at 04:20 on Jan 30, 2009 |
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Jan 30, 2009 04:18
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If the jack had the ability to have an IP, then it would need a nic and also POE right? And just curious, why would you want to be able to ping a jack? ease fucked around with this message at 04:45 on Jan 30, 2009 |
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Jan 30, 2009 04:43
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ease posted:If the jack had the ability to have an IP, then it would need a nic and also POE right? i can set up a monitor to ping it every few minutes and report when there is possible wiring damage in the wall XD
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Jan 30, 2009 05:02
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Local Yokel posted:When you cover your windows, just be conscious of where and how you're adhering it around the window. Did this in a rented college house once, and I'm sure it saved us several hundred dollars. When we took it off in the spring it pulled some of the finish from the window trim. It wasn't noticed when we moved out, but if it had been my house it would have bothered me.
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Jan 30, 2009 23:33
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I have a coffee maker, the vertical kind with a big "carafe" thermos bucket that fits inside the lower half. I am thinking about a way to modify the machine so that it can process more water at a time than the 7 cups allowed in the water tank before you reach the ridiculously-designed overflow hole. I am not sure if the heating element gets turned on for always the same length of time (long enough for 7 cups) no matter how much water is used, or if it will know when there is no water left and go off then. Is the heater more likely that to be on a timer, or more likely to only turn off when all the water is gone? The latter would make this modification a lot easier. I can't think of a way to check which way the electronics work, or find a readily-apparent second water level indicator. I'm sure there's a standard.
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Jan 31, 2009 03:28
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like.a.kite posted:I have a coffee maker, the vertical kind with a big "carafe" thermos bucket that fits inside the lower half. I am thinking about a way to modify the machine so that it can process more water at a time than the 7 cups allowed in the water tank before you reach the ridiculously-designed overflow hole. I am not sure if the heating element gets turned on for always the same length of time (long enough for 7 cups) no matter how much water is used, or if it will know when there is no water left and go off then. Is the heater more likely that to be on a timer, or more likely to only turn off when all the water is gone? The latter would make this modification a lot easier. I can't think of a way to check which way the electronics work, or find a readily-apparent second water level indicator. I'm sure there's a standard. Every coffeemaker I've ever taken apart has just had a thermal switch on the heater element. When there's no more water, it gets hot and shuts the heater off.
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Jan 31, 2009 04:05
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I'm in the process of finishing my basement, currently all the framing is up and yesterday I started with the drywall. I bought a Rotozip DR1 for zipping around the outlet boxes, doorways and stuff, but for the life of me I can't figure out how to get a clean cut around boxes. I've watched YouTube videos, read tutorials and practiced, but I just can't get it. Either I melt through the box (and I'm not using the dime-a-dozen blue Carlon boxes, I sprung for the heavy-duty SuperBlue variety), or the bit wanders. What voodoo magic do I have to do to make this work properly? I can handle the Rotozip freehand, measuring and marking for the cuts, but I want to be like the cool kids and cut the boxes in place. Or does it just take tons of practice? Thanks in advance.
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Feb 2, 2009 05:50
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Mthrboard posted:I'm in the process of finishing my basement, currently all the framing is up and yesterday I started with the drywall. I bought a Rotozip DR1 for zipping around the outlet boxes, doorways and stuff, but for the life of me I can't figure out how to get a clean cut around boxes. I've watched YouTube videos, read tutorials and practiced, but I just can't get it. Either I melt through the box (and I'm not using the dime-a-dozen blue Carlon boxes, I sprung for the heavy-duty SuperBlue variety), or the bit wanders. What voodoo magic do I have to do to make this work properly? I can handle the Rotozip freehand, measuring and marking for the cuts, but I want to be like the cool kids and cut the boxes in place. Or does it just take tons of practice? Thanks in advance. The pros cut the drywall beforehand. Stupid cocksucker drywall-installing assholes cut boxes after the drywall is up and the wire is pulled into the box, cutting the wire and making my job harder. Sorry; I'm an electrician by trade and have a low opinion of people with wandering rotozips. Truthfully, even the pros have bits that wander if they're cutting the box in place, and we use metal boxes that don't get cut by rotozip bits. I haven't seen a drywall installer yet that can manage to make a decent cut after the rock is on the wall; they just leave it up to the tapers to tape around the box then fill it full of drywall mud and make my job harder and messier. To sum: if you want it to look good, measure and cut before putting it on the wall. If you want it to look like some Mexican did it for $4/hr, do it afterwards and use lots of tape and joint compound to cover up the ragged mess.
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Feb 2, 2009 06:09
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I'm in a 60 year old rental house, and we have steam boiler heat. I just realized yesterday that in the basement, the steam pipes are only haphazardly insulated - there are 1"-2" gaps every few feet, and the bends are not covered at all. Basically a fast, half-rear end job done by a slipshod landlord. How much should I worry about this? Is it basically useless because it's not done well? We're paying out the waz for heat this winter, if full insulation would help, I'll do it in a heartbeat.
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Feb 2, 2009 20:26
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alucinor posted:I'm in a 60 year old rental house, and we have steam boiler heat. I just realized yesterday that in the basement, the steam pipes are only haphazardly insulated - there are 1"-2" gaps every few feet, and the bends are not covered at all. Basically a fast, half-rear end job done by a slipshod landlord. Do it, it'll cost next to nothing and make some difference, it won't hurt. Unless you burn yourself on a hot pipe 
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Feb 2, 2009 20:53
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I'm getting ready to paint some very old plaster walls - about 100 years old if they are actually original. They had no paint on them in the first place, just many layers of paper, so removing everything has left me with clean plaster that's in relatively good condition. What type of primer is best for walls like this? I've seen conflicting advice on whether to go with oil-based, latex-based, or even other sealing products before applying primer. Here's a picture from after the paper was removed (before cleaning):  Click here for the full 940x705 image. And here's some of the wallpaper that was on there. This wasn't even the bottom layer:  Click here for the full 940x705 image.
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Feb 4, 2009 21:23
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What makes a good oven? I'm shopping for one, and all I know to look for is electric flat-top, no coils (or at least that's what I've heard?). They go in price from in the $400s up to whatever you want to pay, and aside from the appearance (Stainless? That'll be +$150, please) they're mostly the same. What's the difference between this and this, for instance?
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Feb 4, 2009 22:37
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I don't really know either, but one of those ovens has five burners on top (rather than four) and also has a delay start, and timed cook feature (so you can throw something in there, and it'll start cooking it an hour before you get home or something). It also has a bigger viewing window in front. I guess you pay an extra $150 for those little sophistications.
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Feb 4, 2009 23:20
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jackpot posted:What makes a good oven? I really really dislike those ceramic cooktops, they take forever to get hot and then when something falls onto it, it burns on and you get a black stain. Then you have to futz around with fancy cleaner. I guess you can make it look cleaner if you try, but I just put foil under my burners and throw it away when it is dirty. Try to spend extra money on the timers and features of the oven, and get the coils for the top. I have a kitchen aid with coils and convection oven in place, and its very nice.
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Feb 5, 2009 19:38
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gross posted:I'm getting ready to paint some very old plaster walls - about 100 years old if they are actually original. They had no paint on them in the first place, just many layers of paper, so removing everything has left me with clean plaster that's in relatively good condition. I've 'primed' with pure brilliant white because it was massively cheaper than primer, that worked perfectly. On plaster you may need to seal, rather than prime. watered down PVA 5:1 water:PVA apparently works but I've never tried this, same with wallpaper paste. I wouldn't chance it, buy the proper stuff.
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Feb 5, 2009 19:41
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blindjoe posted:I really really dislike those ceramic cooktops, they take forever to get hot and then when something falls onto it, it burns on and you get a black stain. Then you have to futz around with fancy cleaner. I guess you can make it look cleaner if you try, but I just put foil under my burners and throw it away when it is dirty. Ceramic cook tops use the exact same technology as your coil stove, and some even have better (boil water in 90 seconds) coils than whats on your traditional coil top. The ceramic isn't doing anything to slow down the heat so you probably just used a lovely one. I've lived in houses that have had coil, ceramic cook top and gas. By far ceramic was the easiest to clean and use. The special cleaners work great if you bake on poo poo, and so does a razor blade. I'd never buy a coil stove. ease fucked around with this message at 23:48 on Feb 5, 2009 |
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Feb 5, 2009 23:45
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Edmond Dantes posted:I need to store a whole bunch of crap (mostly books/magazines, but some other stuff as well) and take them to my building's basement for storage until we decide what to do with them. What would be the best way of making sure they are not completely ruined by dirt/humidity? I was thinking putting the books in cardboard boxes and tape them shut (duh), but should I take any extra steps? (I don't know, like putting reynolds wrap around the box or something?). ease posted:I'd line the cardboard boxes with garbage bags, and tightly zip tie the opening shut to keep humidity out. (That sounds like a good idea.) I have lived in generally harsh tropical environments (with typhoons, hurricanes etc) , so take my input with a grain of salt. I would worry more about things getting wet from the bottom and/or things stewed in trapped in moisture than anything else. I would worry more about storing thing off the floor, and making sure the boxes can drain if they do get wet, than trying to hermetically seal them. In my storage experience, the killer is the bottom of a box rotting away and leaving things completely exposed, or the bottom of a plastic box not rotting away but trapping in moisture that essentially turns books into fertilizer for a mushroom farm.
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Feb 6, 2009 16:33
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EVERYTHING I SAY ABOUT JAPAN OR LIVING IN JAPAN IS COMPLETELY WRONG, BUT YOU BETTER BELIEVE I'LL 
ABOUT IT.
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Ended up buying a ceramic top stove, because everyone I talked to said avoid coils like the plague. Would have loved to get gas, but the neighborhood doesn't have it. Next question: is there a general rule for how many smoke detectors a house should have? 1,740sqft, three bedrooms.
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Feb 6, 2009 17:49
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jackpot posted:Ended up buying a ceramic top stove, because everyone I talked to said avoid coils like the plague. Would have loved to get gas, but the neighborhood doesn't have it. I don't think one in each bedroom, hallway, and main room is overkill, honestly. Do you want to not wake up because the fire started in the room without the smoke detector? If you've got any sort of open floor plan, like two rooms connected openly, you can probably get away with one.
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Feb 6, 2009 18:25
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jackpot posted:Ended up buying a ceramic top stove, because everyone I talked to said avoid coils like the plague. Would have loved to get gas, but the neighborhood doesn't have it. Check the local fire and electrical codes, there are definitely rules for this. I would say one in each bedroom, one in the kitchen, and one in the hallway, but you really should check local laws.
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Feb 6, 2009 18:59
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^ Will do, thanks. We've already been through inspection and the guy didn't point out how many there had to be, just that the ones that are there now need to be replaced...and I don't think there's currently one in each bedroom. We'll be sure and do that. Yeah, that makes sense; downstairs is open, but upstairs it won't hurt to have a bunch more. Except for all those damned batteries! 
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Feb 6, 2009 19:08
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jackpot posted:Except for all those damned batteries!
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Feb 6, 2009 22:01
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Fire Storm posted:Well, if you believe the hype, there are ones with 10 year batteries. OR, if you want to do a little electrical work, you can always go with hard wired smoke detectors. Batteries might require attention every now & then but I'd rather that than require my power be on to detect a fire 
cakesmith handyman fucked around with this message at 12:00 on Feb 7, 2009 |
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Feb 7, 2009 11:52
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They have battery backups in them.
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Feb 7, 2009 14:08
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Cakefool posted:Batteries might require attention every now & then but I'd rather that than require my power be on to detect a fire Put the 10 year batteries in the hard wired detectors, problem solved. Or, if you don't want to do wiring, there are some detectors that communicate wirelessly. If you do hard wire them, make sure you wire them into the same circuit as your master bedroom lighting. That way if the circuit blows you'll know right away. Also, add at least one carbon monoxide detector to each floor.
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Feb 7, 2009 16:45
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gross posted:I'm getting ready to paint some very old plaster walls - about 100 years old if they are actually original. They had no paint on them in the first place, just many layers of paper, so removing everything has left me with clean plaster that's in relatively good condition. You want to use Kilz.
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Feb 9, 2009 04:33
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Mthrboard posted:Put the 10 year batteries in the hard wired detectors, problem solved. Or, if you don't want to do wiring, there are some detectors that communicate wirelessly. If you do hard wire them, make sure you wire them into the same circuit as your master bedroom lighting. That way if the circuit blows you'll know right away. Also, add at least one carbon monoxide detector to each floor. Regarding 10-year batteries, I was told by my local insurance claims guy that while the batteries may work just fine (which is demonstrated by pushing the test button), the actual sensor that detects the smoke isn't really meant to last more than 7 years or so, requiring a full detector change. Any word on this? Is this a scheme to get people to keep buying detectors? Should testing be done by blowing smoke into the detectors, instead of just pushing the test button?
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Feb 9, 2009 18:58
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jovial_cynic posted:Regarding 10-year batteries, I was told by my local insurance claims guy that while the batteries may work just fine (which is demonstrated by pushing the test button), the actual sensor that detects the smoke isn't really meant to last more than 7 years or so, requiring a full detector change. I think it's a scam. I know the half-life of americium is a long time; hundreds of years, so that's not a factor. If my parents' 20-year-old CD player still works, I have to imagine the smoke detector will still work OK, being it is a much simpler circuit with far fewer moving parts. However, if your insurance company wants you to replace them every 7 years, then that's what you do; insurance companies don't make money by giving it out, and they'll take ANY way they can to not pay on a claim.
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Feb 9, 2009 22:53
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babyeatingpsychopath posted:I think it's a scam. I know the half-life of americium is a long time; hundreds of years, so that's not a factor. If my parents' 20-year-old CD player still works, I have to imagine the smoke detector will still work OK, being it is a much simpler circuit with far fewer moving parts. I don't know much about americium, but I do know that sensors can fail for any number of reasons, and I wasn't sure if dust build-up or long-term oxidization of a vital sensor componant could be an issue in a smoke detector. As for the insurance company bit -- I work on the home insurance side of a major insurance company (just not in claims). I do know, however, that we don't deny claims based on lack of smoke-detector upkeep. A smoke detector is really there to help mitigate the life-safety concern, since it's harder to replace a person than it is to replace a house.
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Feb 9, 2009 23:28
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