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Pufflekins posted:I haven't done much residential and I've got a guy who wants me to throw a security light on his deck. Which is no problem, but what's the best way to conceal the wire going from under the deck up to the light. I don't want to leave any exposed wire and I don't feel conduit would be the best route. I've run PVC conduit up a column before and boxed the column in to cover it up. I would try to go up through the adjacent if possible.
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May 26, 2013 21:55
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Soopafly posted:Quick, highly uneducated question: I've got a tile shower I'm remodeling and would like to add a light to. There is a light in the bathroom (maybe 48" from desired location) that would be ideal to just move straight in there and use a new waterproof fixture. I've taken the old fixture off and the box out, but the wiring needs to be longer. What's the best way to do this? Are there any special precautions to take since its a shower? House was built in 1971 and all the electrical seems to be original. I know there is a general rule about upgrading an old fixture (that uses 60c wire) with a brand new one that basically states you have to run so many feet of new wire to the fixture and connect the old wire to the new inside a junction box. kid sinister posted:The NEC says that NM must be fastened to and ran through studs at least 1&1/4" back from the stud face for new work. This is a problem for 2x2 furring strip walls since 2x2s are actually 1&1/2 by 1&1/2. You can't staple in a quarter inch width and it's near impossible to drill a hole sideways flat against a wall. I'm leaning more towards Flexible Carlon ENT conduit rather than steel. The eastern side of my house (where most of the rewiring has to take place) was where most of the interior termite damage took place. There's some level of moisture penetration through my masonry walls. So I want to avoid steel boxes for that reason as well.
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May 28, 2013 12:31
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The Gardenator posted:I know there is a general rule about upgrading an old fixture (that uses 60c wire) with a brand new one that basically states you have to run so many feet of new wire to the fixture and connect the old wire to the new inside a junction box. The problem here is that ENT doesn't protect from physical damage. If there are masonry walls in direct contact with the earth, that's considered a wet location, so now you have wet location fun! No NM! If you're going behind furring strips now, run all your stuff in EMT conduit with raintight compression-style fittings. Notch the furring strips where you need to cross over them, and leave the conduit flat. The furring strips are load bearing for the drywall only, and the drywall screws have a hard time getting through EMT.
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May 28, 2013 12:43
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The Gardenator posted:There's some level of moisture penetration through my masonry walls. You will want to take care of that before you even think about finishing those walls, let alone doing any electrical work. Soopafly posted:Quick, highly uneducated question: I've got a tile shower I'm remodeling and would like to add a light to. There is a light in the bathroom (maybe 48" from desired location) that would be ideal to just move straight in there and use a new waterproof fixture. I've taken the old fixture off and the box out, but the wiring needs to be longer. What's the best way to do this? Are there any special precautions to take since its a shower? House was built in 1971 and all the electrical seems to be original. All mains wiring junctions must be made inside junction boxes with proper cable clamping. All junction boxes must be covered and always accessible, with "accessible" being the key word here. That means you have 3 options. The first is to put an old work box back in the old hole, do your extension from there and slap a cover on it. The second option is almost the same, but you would put the old fixture (or a new one) back up on the first box. The third option is only if you have attic access over that bathroom. Attics count as accessible, so you could climb up there, find that hole in the ceiling, free up enough slack in the existing cable, nail a new work box to a joist up there, make the junction, cover it, run cable from there to the new box and patch the old hole in your bathroom ceiling with some drywall, preferably greenboard. The wire gauge of your extension must be at least as large as the existing wire. That looks like 12 gauge in your picture. And with popcorn ceilings like yours, that's definitely a 1971 house. 
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May 28, 2013 16:54
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Awesome, thanks for the help. It's accessible through a crawlspace to the attic, so I'll put in a box and patch over that hole. And with any luck that popcorn will be gone in another couple days too. 
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May 28, 2013 23:30
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Careful with the popcorn, depending on how old it is it may have asbestos in it. I hate to bring it up but better safe than sorry. Hell, if it were me I'd probably rip the entire ceiling out, drywall is like 8 bucks a 4x8 and you can do whatever wiring and stuff you need with ease. I'd rather spend the 50 bucks on a couple walls and ceilings worth of drywall and a few hours with a putty knife than screw around trying to patch and cover up demolition damage and previous owner hackjobs/water damage etc.
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May 29, 2013 06:11
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kastein posted:Careful with the popcorn, depending on how old it is it may have asbestos in it. I hate to bring it up but better safe than sorry. Just remember to borrow/rent a drywall hanger if you do the ceilings.
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May 29, 2013 14:41
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XmasGiftFromWife posted:Just remember to borrow/rent a drywall hanger if you do the ceilings. Or just ask a friend to help. We're only talking about a bathroom here, so it won't kill any helper's arms to hold up drywall for 20-30 minutes.
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Jun 1, 2013 00:49
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Yep. When working alone on ceiling sheetrock in small rooms I like to just lean a 2x4 against the opposite wall with the end about 2-3" below the level where the sheetrock will end up. Lift that end of the sheet up and get it sitting on the 2x4, then carefully lift and finagle the other end into perfect position, stuff a couple screws in it, then work my way toward the 2x4 and remove it. You come up with some pretty strange techniques for getting 2-3 person jobs done with only two hands when you remodel a house alone.
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Jun 1, 2013 00:53
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Here's a tip. When putting up the cheapo $10 "Home Depot special" lights, line up the mounting screws first, don't rely on the diagram it comes with. The directions said the mounting screws go in the green holes on the outside, when they really go in the red holes right next to them. Took me 30 minutes of aggravation, tearing up the yellow foam heat insulation in the fixture trying to get the fixture on.kastein posted:Careful with the popcorn, depending on how old it is it may have asbestos in it. I hate to bring it up but better safe than sorry. I want to wire some new lights in my apartment's ceiling, but can't because of of asbestos in the popcorn ceiling. I guess when I sell it I'll have it all removed when it's empty. Just to clarify, the lights I was talking about in the beginning of this post were not in my apartment. particle409 fucked around with this message at 03:24 on Jun 1, 2013 |
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Jun 1, 2013 03:20
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I've got a question about an outdoor outlet at my house that's not working. It's a GFCI outlet that was working at some point last year and now is un-usable. The light on the outlet is on, and I'm not able to reset the unit to get it to turn off. As far as I know, no other outlets are wired through that unit because every other plug in my house works fine. I also don't think that the plug has tripped any breakers because those are all functioning okay too. All I can think of after doing some research online is that the waterproof box for the outlet wasn't installed well and moisture got in the outlet and messed with something? It wouldn't surprise me given the quality of some of the renovations that were made on the flipper I bought the house from. Is this something I should just call an electrician about or is it something that I could take on myself? I'm pretty limited in my electrical knowledge, it's limited to things like installing ceiling fans and changing out light fixtures, and I also would like to not kill myself or burn my house down
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Jun 6, 2013 22:50
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Laminator posted:I've got a question about an outdoor outlet at my house that's not working. It's a GFCI outlet For most manufacturers, a GFCI light on means the GFCI is getting power but was tripped. If you can't reset it, then it needs to be replaced, and probably the cover too. If you can handle a flathead screwdriver and a roll of electrical tape, you can do this. Before you start, is this GFCI in a box that's flush to your house, or is the box completely outside your house? How about a picture? I got a nagging feeling that your flipper didn't use the right box...
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Jun 7, 2013 00:14
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 This is the box that's on my front porch but it's the same as the one on the back porch, except it's just exposed on a brick wall. (I can't get out my back doors at the moment because the contractors used poo poo wood doors and painted them with indoor paint, so over the past 2 years the rain and sun has caused all the paint to peel, and when it rains the wood soaks up the water and the doors expand in the jamb and get stuck. Incredible. Replacing them soon.) It's just a plastic box with a lid and a foam back, and the foam isn't flush on the back wall. Any suggestions for a replacement box, or should I go for one that could be recessed in the wall?
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Jun 7, 2013 01:23
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Laminator posted:It's just a plastic box with a lid and a foam back, and the foam isn't flush on the back wall. Any suggestions for a replacement box, or should I go for one that could be recessed in the wall? That's technically just the 'in use' cover, as required by new code. If installed on brick, they really should be sealed, as the foam doesn't. Replace the GFI. It's like  . Breaker off, old one out, new one in.Once it's replaced, really actually test it monthly, like the directions say. That keeps the contacts lubricated, and keeps the GFI working much longer.
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Jun 7, 2013 01:52
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babyeatingpsychopath posted:That's technically just the 'in use' cover, as required by new code. If installed on brick, they really should be sealed, as the foam doesn't. They're more like $15-16. Weather and tamper resistant ones as also required by new code are like $18-19. Laminator, that's the right box and cover. I was expecting an external box on siding. Maybe try getting an extra gasket for it or two?
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Jun 7, 2013 02:28
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Okay, sounds good. I'll get a new gfci and see if I can grab a new gasket. Maybe a bead of caulk around the outside of the case would help?
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Jun 7, 2013 02:38
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Oh definitely.
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Jun 7, 2013 02:50
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Laminator posted:Okay, sounds good. I'll get a new gfci and see if I can grab a new gasket. Maybe a bead of caulk around the outside of the case would help?
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Jun 7, 2013 17:32
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Picked up a new GFCI and some replacement gaskets. Shut off the breakers to the entire house because I wasn't sure which one it was on and opened up the box. That's when things got strange... A ton of ants started crawling out of the box and there was what looked like a huge egg cache in there. You can see the ants and the little off-white eggs; the white power is some borax I shot in there to kill everything off. I also took some canned air and sprayed everything out of there to get it cleared. Dunno if those little shits were what caused the GFCI to fail, there were a few that crawled out of the unit when I was unscrewing the wires. Anyway, got the new unit installed, new gaskets, and put a bead of caulk. New unit is working fine, so hopefully there's not an ant recolonization that happens. Homeownership  Thanks for the help electrical goons!e: Okay, new problem. The reason I was replacing the GFCI to begin with was to use my new electric lawnmower in my backyard. It has a 13A/120V motor, and I used it in the front yard already and it ran fine. When I try and run it in my backyard, though, turning it on trips the breaker. This is a bit of a problem because I dropped $200 on it and since I've used it probably can't return it. Any ideas of why it's not working off the GFCI? It's running through the breaker that does the adjoining room, and the only thing I have plugged in in there is a powerstrip supplying a monitor (that's not turned on) and a lamp with a CF bulb (also not turned on at the time I was trying to run the mower). I just checked it on the front outlet to see if it was a problem with the mower or extension cord, and it ran fine. Are my breakers for the back just not rated for a high enough amperage or something? I think all my outlets are running 20A breakers. Laminator fucked around with this message at 21:42 on Jun 7, 2013 |
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Jun 7, 2013 18:41
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Are you sure there isn't anything else on that circuit? Maybe another room? Electrician can do some weird circuits sometimes. It's pretty common and acceptable to put outside outlets on the same circuit as the garage outlets and put the GFCI in the garage.
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Jun 7, 2013 22:44
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Bathrooms too. I used to have my outdoor, garage, and both bathrooms all on the same GFCI when I moved in.
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Jun 8, 2013 00:30
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As far as I can tell they're on separate circuits. The only breaker to trip is that east bedroom, the other west bedroom has a separate breaker, and the bathroom has its own breaker. Even if they were in the same circuit, it's not like I have a lot of power draw from that half of my house anyway, basically my alarm clock and some lamps.
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Jun 8, 2013 01:14
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Laminator posted:That's when things got strange... Ha, reminds me of my AC condenser not working outside. Those loving ants built up so many of their dead bodies in the contactor that it would no longer make contact to turn on when it got the call from the thermostat. Laminator posted:As far as I can tell they're on separate circuits. The only breaker to trip is that east bedroom, the other west bedroom has a separate breaker, and the bathroom has its own breaker. Even if they were in the same circuit, it's not like I have a lot of power draw from that half of my house anyway, basically my alarm clock and some lamps. Don't make assumptions... What about the basement? ShadowStalker posted:Electrician can do some weird circuits sometimes. And previous owners can be even weirder. 
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Jun 8, 2013 01:29
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No basement, just a crawlspace (I sure hope there's no outlets down there). I'm basing the circuits on the labels on my breaker box, though I know those are not the most reliable...
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Jun 8, 2013 02:39
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Are both breakers the same rating? I'm guessing the one that is tripping is a 15 amp and the one that isn't is a 20 amp, or something like that.
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Jun 8, 2013 18:22
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Laminator posted:No basement, just a crawlspace (I sure hope there's no outlets down there). I'm basing the circuits on the labels on my breaker box, though I know those are not the most reliable... Whatever circuit it's on, don't go by the wire gauge. Yellow is the modern color for 12 gauge cable and only became standard within the past decade. Any home built that recently wouldn't need a flipper yet. That box was a retrofit. The mortar around it looks half assed anyway. Still, that newness can be your next clue. How about the obvious? What room is on the other side of that wall?
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Jun 8, 2013 21:25
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Update: I just had another bulb explode. Sent broken glass over ten feet away and the fixture is only just above eye level. Why the hell to my halogen bulbs keep exploding? I use a plastic bag to put the bulbs in so its not that I'm touching them. Pro tip: If a push-in bulb is broken off flush with the base and pliers can't get a grip on the stump, prying it out from the side with a sharp pocket knife seems to work. Cat Hatter posted:Had a halogen bulb literally explode in one of my fixtures and now the base is still in the socket. Is there some trick to getting the broken glass out of the socket so I can put a new bulb in?
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Jun 8, 2013 23:23
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Cat Hatter posted:Update: I just had another bulb explode. Sent broken glass over ten feet away and the fixture is only just above eye level. Why the hell to my halogen bulbs keep exploding? I use a plastic bag to put the bulbs in so its not that I'm touching them. Same or different socket?
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Jun 9, 2013 01:08
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Cat Hatter posted:Update: I just had another bulb explode. Sent broken glass over ten feet away and the fixture is only just above eye level. Why the hell to my halogen bulbs keep exploding? I use a plastic bag to put the bulbs in so its not that I'm touching them. This looks like a chandelier. Does a dimmer switch control the light? Dimming halogen bulbs too low for too long of a period will shorten their life drastically.
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Jun 9, 2013 15:46
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Different sockets and it isn't on a dimmer.
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Jun 9, 2013 17:31
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Are you sure it's the right size bulb? Because if it is it sounds like the fixture is broken.
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Jun 9, 2013 17:50
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As sure as I can be without having a manual. I'm hoping that I just got a bad batch of bulbs since I bought all five at the same time and they've been fine since September until they all started burning out/exploding this past month. The weird thing is that this problem seems to be completely unheard of on Google.
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Jun 9, 2013 21:13
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Cat Hatter posted:The weird thing is that this problem seems to be completely unheard of on Google. http://bit.ly/14qCHlx 
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Jun 9, 2013 22:13
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Alright, I walked into that one. That was slightly more helpful than the more specific searches that I did, but explanations still seem to range from "don't touch the bulb" to "gently caress if I know". ...dick.
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Jun 10, 2013 04:30
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Cat Hatter posted:Alright, I walked into that one. That was slightly more helpful than the more specific searches that I did, but explanations still seem to range from "don't touch the bulb" to "gently caress if I know". Just having a little fun with ya... :-D Try getting different brand bulbs. Like you said before, it is possible that you got a bad batch when you bought them.
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Jun 10, 2013 04:53
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I'm too lazy to try another brand yet because then I'd have to go to a different store, but the last time I picked one up I got a regular bulb because they're built a bit different from the double-life bulbs that I've been using. I was actually wondering if anyone knows why the normal bulbs have a sort of doughnut-hole in the middle of them? I've never seen anything like it in a light bulb before. Either way, I've had to replace 4 of the 5 bulbs so far, its even money if the last one will burn out or explode, but I'll probably know by the end of the month.
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Jun 10, 2013 08:35
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Cat Hatter posted:I'm too lazy to try another brand yet because then I'd have to go to a different store, but the last time I picked one up I got a regular bulb because they're built a bit different from the double-life bulbs that I've been using. I was actually wondering if anyone knows why the normal bulbs have a sort of doughnut-hole in the middle of them? I've never seen anything like it in a light bulb before.
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Jun 10, 2013 10:47
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Alright, my "easy" wiring project has already taken an unexpected twist. The stereo plug on my headphones has a short, so I decided I'd try to chop it off and put a new one on. A few minutes of Googling led me to believe I could just sand off any coating on the individual wires, and solder them to the correct posts on the new plug. Unfortunately, I'm pretty inexperienced with this kind of thing, and wasn't expecting the wires to look like this. Each wire has a very small amount of metal coiled around what appears to be a nylon core or some such thing. Is this nylon just for added strength, or does it actually carry a signal? Am I correct in assuming that the two colored wires are colored because they have some sort of coating that I'll need to remove before I can solder them? Thanks in advance for any insight you're willing to give a fellow goon.
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Jun 11, 2013 06:23
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basically... good loving luck. The nylon does not carry a signal, it's used as the filler for the conductor to make it more flexible and stronger in tension so it takes longer to metal fatigue the conductors. It also makes it pure hell to solder that wire. I usually throw em out and buy another pair.
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Jun 11, 2013 06:25
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The nylon is there to allow the manf. To use as little conductor possible. Even if you were able to solder the connection it would be tremendously weak and likely fail quickly. Go buy a new pair, and quit chewing/twirling/yanking/etc your earphones.
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Jun 11, 2013 14:41
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