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priznat posted:I live in the PNW so it doesn't get too terribly cold. Back when I looked into it a few years ago it seemed like 92 was pretty standard HE, but there were 96% ones out. The sales guy actually was steering me away from those because of the extra costs for servicing and I think the frequency you needed it regularly serviced was about doubled. The difference between 92% efficiency and 96% efficiency is pretty small. If you live somewhere that doesn't get "too terribly cold", then there are pretty good chances that the 96% will never pay for itself over the 92% across its entire lifespan, even if servicing costs are the same. And if you use a heat pump, then it's even worse.
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Oct 15, 2013 21:20
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Zhentar posted:The difference between 92% efficiency and 96% efficiency is pretty small. If you live somewhere that doesn't get "too terribly cold", then there are pretty good chances that the 96% will never pay for itself over the 92% across its entire lifespan, even if servicing costs are the same. And if you use a heat pump, then it's even worse. Cool, glad to know the sales guy was being straight with me! My dad has a heat pump and he loves it, it works really well in this climate. Only issue with his is that it sounds like a WW2 bomber when going at full blast. He's not near anyone so it's not an issue but I hope the newer ones are better so I don't piss off my neighbours.
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Oct 15, 2013 21:33
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We apparently have a leak somewhere. The plumber couldn't find it, but is "95% sure" it's in the main water line from the meter to our house somewhere under the slab. They want to replace the entire line and have quoted $6500. Google tells me that's high, but does anyone have any real world experience? For due diligence sake, we have another company coming Thursday to diagnose and quote, and our house warranty ($500 max coverage) is sending someone as well on Friday.
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Oct 15, 2013 23:32
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three posted:We apparently have a leak somewhere. The plumber couldn't find it, but is "95% sure" it's in the main water line from the meter to our house somewhere under the slab. They want to replace the entire line and have quoted $6500. Google tells me that's high, but does anyone have any real world experience? It is quite impossible to tell you how much that job should cost without seeing your house.
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Oct 16, 2013 00:56
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Motronic posted:It is quite impossible to tell you how much that job should cost without seeing your house. All good. Was just wondering if anyone had it done and if so what range they hit, just out of curiosity.
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Oct 16, 2013 01:10
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three posted:All good. Was just wondering if anyone had it done and if so what range they hit, just out of curiosity. Understand, the "range" has everything to do with how long the lateral is, how much of is it under concrete, HOW MUCH concrete is there, how it is finished now (assuming it will have to be restored to that condition), and what other acces affecting factors are involved. This can literally be a "range" between $500 and $50,000. Or more. Obviously it's doubtful to be THAT expensive as one would assume that you would mention that your basement is 200x300 square feet and this pipe crosses the entire thing, and it's been finished and upfit with endangered hardwood flooring. The kind of information needed for any sort of educated guess would include measurements (of the run under concrete as well as through the yard), any limiting access factors, and knowledge of what fee if any your local municipality and water authority will place on the work. This just isn't something that internet is good for.
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Oct 16, 2013 01:29
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For a related question. To replace my main water line from street to house I was quoted a similar price of ~5-6K. Is it possible for me to dig up the water line myself and then with an exposed water line from end to end pay a plumber to replace the line for significantly less than 5-6K since all the digging work is done? I am really asking, where is the cost coming from for something like this? For my house the run is probably 100-150 feet from street to outer wall >> water stuff is in the basement with easy access.
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Oct 16, 2013 03:12
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Totally TWISTED posted:For a related question. To replace my main water line from street to house I was quoted a similar price of ~5-6K. Is it possible for me to dig up the water line myself and then with an exposed water line from end to end pay a plumber to replace the line for significantly less than 5-6K since all the digging work is done? I am really asking, where is the cost coming from for something like this? Why not just replace it yourself? It's really not that hard. It's a lot of manual labor digging out the pipe. Or you can find a place that rents a small backhoe and dig it out quickly for maybe a $200 rental fee. My main water line is PVC and I've replaced a piece of it due to it leaking.
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Oct 16, 2013 03:49
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ShadowStalker posted:Why not just replace it yourself? I honestly just kind of assumed a job with that sort of price tag might be out of the scope of my ability. I'll do some googling but happen to have any DIY links on the topic? I want to replace mine because the line between street > house being old and small diameter is supposedly why the water pressure sucks in the house.
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Oct 16, 2013 04:15
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stupid puma posted:They're awesome so far, although the washer now causes a water hammer that I'm going to deal with this weekend. http://www.amazon.com/Sioux-Chief-Mfg-660-H-4-Inch/dp/B000H5MQNM These are perfect for that. You can either install them over the hot and cold inlets on the back of your washer or on the valves on the wall. I've seen them for sale at both Home Depot or Lowes too.
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Oct 16, 2013 04:38
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Totally TWISTED posted:I honestly just kind of assumed a job with that sort of price tag might be out of the scope of my ability. I'll do some googling but happen to have any DIY links on the topic? It also depends on the composition of the soil. Here in southern NJ it's mostly sand, but occasionally geology is a dick & we hit clay & marl, which are just awesome fun to pick at & will ruin your day. Check with your local government/township etc, you may need a plumber to tie into the municipal water supply & a permit. Still cheaper to dig your own; easier if you can rent a 48" Ditch Witch. If the soil cooperates & you can rent one, you could try a water drill, although boring from your foundation laterally over 100' and hitting the main tie out at the street will be iffy. My neighbor ran one out 60' and missed by less than a foot. Makes quite the wet mess in the basement, though.
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Oct 16, 2013 05:17
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The way they want to replace the line in my case is going around the house, breaking up a bit of the drive way and sidewalk, and then coming into a corner utility room. They didn't quote me on repairing the driveway, but lets assume they need to repair the driveway over like 15 feet or so. Am I going to need to repave my entire driveway to avoid it looking like a mismatched mess? Is that going to end up costing more than even running the water line? 
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Oct 16, 2013 13:58
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I just finished staining and putting polyurethane on an Ikea table top and was hoping to keep it protected from chips and scratches. What are my options for desk protectors that don't look terrible? Mainly worried about where I rest my mouse pad since it's a hard plastic one and already left a half-dime-sized chip in the coating.  The desk in question: 
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Oct 16, 2013 18:28
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Motronic posted:Yes. You can use whatever thermostat you want on any piece of equipment. This is all great advice, with the one caveat that if you end up going with the premium lines from carrier or lennox (and soon trane) with fully-variable compressors, you are stuck with the OEM thermostat. Not that that's necessarily bad thing-- the infinity touch looks neat, looking forward to my install next week.
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Oct 16, 2013 18:28
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kid sinister posted:http://www.amazon.com/Sioux-Chief-Mfg-660-H-4-Inch/dp/B000H5MQNM I have an LG washer that I've installed these on the supply lines to. They work OK, but there's still some hammer.
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Oct 16, 2013 18:30
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Zhentar posted:The difference between 92% efficiency and 96% efficiency is pretty small. If you live somewhere that doesn't get "too terribly cold", then there are pretty good chances that the 96% will never pay for itself over the 92% across its entire lifespan, even if servicing costs are the same. And if you use a heat pump, then it's even worse. Along these lines, here's an EIA spreadsheet that lets you plug in fuel costs, efficiencies and theoretical heating methods and find out what kind of cost savings you can expect with efficiency changes or gas v. heat pump. https://www.eia.gov/neic/experts/heatcalc.xls
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Oct 16, 2013 18:34
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Totally TWISTED posted:I honestly just kind of assumed a job with that sort of price tag might be out of the scope of my ability. I'll do some googling but happen to have any DIY links on the topic? I can't speak for the actual plumbing part, but a good bit of the expense for something like that is the labor of digging it all up. If you don't mind digging a trench a few feet deep in your front yard you can save a bunch of money. You know how a shovel works, right?
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Oct 16, 2013 18:58
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Qwijib0 posted:This is all great advice, with the one caveat that if you end up going with the premium lines from carrier or lennox (and soon trane) with fully-variable compressors, you are stuck with the OEM thermostat. Not that that's necessarily bad thing-- the infinity touch looks neat, looking forward to my install next week. Good point. There are a few in the very high end that need their own stat, although I think you can use a Nest on some of them.
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Oct 16, 2013 19:15
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three posted:The way they want to replace the line in my case is going around the house, breaking up a bit of the drive way and sidewalk, and then coming into a corner utility room. They didn't quote me on repairing the driveway, but lets assume they need to repair the driveway over like 15 feet or so. Am I going to need to repave my entire driveway to avoid it looking like a mismatched mess? Is that going to end up costing more than even running the water line?
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Oct 16, 2013 21:23
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Voodoo posted:I had a leak in my main water pipe last year, luckily it was pretty close to the meter (and not the townhousehouse). The guy had to take out (and replace) the sidewalk slab above where the pipe was though, which I suspect was most of the cost. Total came to about $3k. Holy crap that was expensive. Was the leak directly under the sidewalk? I had a leak about 2 feet from the sidewalk. A few hours with a shovel and less than $25 in parts (Bought key to turn off water and my pvc glue was old) and it was all fixed. Even if the leak was in the middle of the sidewalk, you can always dig out both sides and replace the pipe that runs under the sidewalk. As a DIY type of guy, I'd say that was a ripoff.
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Oct 17, 2013 19:45
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Our 2nd plumber came out and thinks the leak is far more likely in the front yard. His logic was: the pipe in the yard is generic piping versus copper in the slab, there are trees with huge roots running through where the line goes, the grass where the line goes is noticeably greener, it could be where the irrigation system was hooked into the main water line. He wants to bring in a scanner for the leak, and then dig it up and fix it where it's leaking instead of replacing the entire main line. Cost estimate: ~$2500. After he came to conclusion, I told him what the last guy said, and he re-checked everything and said that he doesn't agree with that analysis. Third opinion (sent from warranty company) comes tomorrow. I guess he'll break the tie.
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Oct 17, 2013 19:58
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PainterofCrap posted:It also depends on the composition of the soil. Here in southern NJ it's mostly sand, but occasionally geology is a dick & we hit clay & marl, which are just awesome fun to pick at & will ruin your day. stubblyhead posted:I can't speak for the actual plumbing part, but a good bit of the expense for something like that is the labor of digging it all up. If you don't mind digging a trench a few feet deep in your front yard you can save a bunch of money. You know how a shovel works, right? 
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Oct 17, 2013 20:12
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Totally TWISTED posted:I have come to realize DIY jobs are never as easy as they appear to be in my mind On that note... So I am planning on installing my own duct-work and a used 80% efficiency furnace in the 70-80k btu range. The previous owners of my house removed the furnace that direct vented to the kitchen, dining room, and living room and sent a single vent upstairs. In its place they put a gas water heater which would need to be moved in order to install a furnace. The old heating system never touched the bedrooms, bathroom, or two out of the three attic rooms. The house is 1640 square feet, although 410 of that is upstairs with a pitched ceiling that is 6' high at it's tallest point. My plan is to install the furnace on the back porch/laundry room area and tap into some attic space which runs mostly the length of the house for a trunk line and return line. I would drop ceiling vents and cold air return into one of the bedrooms which is adjacent to the laundry room and then come down through the mechanical closet at the end od the trunk line (about 23-25 feet end to end) into the old direct vented grates for the living room dining room and kitchen. I could hit two the the upstairs rooms at the bottoms of their walls. To hit the other bedroom i would be making a short run across the celing of the laundry room and coming through the wall, and then possibly moving up to hit the remaining upstairs room. My question is how should I go about sizing the trunk line so that the system actually works? How about the returns? Is there an online calculator that can help me with this?
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Oct 18, 2013 04:34
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therobit posted:On that note... First, have you performed a manual J to determine the furnace size, or are you just guessing based on square footage? Second, what are you going to use for the ducting? Round, Square, Flex? Heating is not *as* sensitive to CFM requirements as cooling (no coil to freeze, etc) but you still would like to size the unit as best as possible. For a 70K BTU 80% furnace, assuming a 55F temp rise, you'll want close to 1000CFM. Here's a calculator that can help you size your ducts (http://efficientcomfort.net/asp/ResDuct_Web/ResDuct_Web.asp) -- you'll probably need a 10x14 or so rectangular trunk, takeoffs to the other rooms being smaller of course. A rough guide to supply register limits: 2x12 = 65 CFM 2x14 = 80 CFM 4x10 = 100 CFM 4x12 = 125 CFM 4x14 = 150 CFM 6x10 = 160 CFM
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Oct 18, 2013 05:44
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Qwijib0 posted:First, have you performed a manual J to determine the furnace size, or are you just guessing based on square footage? Thanks for the link and the register info. I am still trying to wrap my head around what it all means. I am guessing I should measure each room for volume and then figure out how many cfm I need for each room? I haven't done a Manual J, and don't really know how to, but that is based on the recommendation of an hvac guy that came and bid 3k to hook up a furnace if I provided all the duct-work and had the plenum and cold air box set up ahead of time. It did not seem like he did any calculations, but he did tour the house and look at what we had existing. He said not to go much lower than 70k btu for an 80% unit and gave a lower number for a 90 or 95% unit but since I can get an 80% unit on craigslist for cheap that is the route I am going. My dad has sheet metal experience (was a journeyman back in the 80s but that was a long time ago) and he seems to be an advocate of using round or flex as he says it is easier to work with. I want to do what is easy but don't want to spend a ton of money. If it is not significantly harder/time consuming/space consuming I was thinking round sheet metal so i don't have to build the square ducts. It seems like the flex is maybe a little more fragile. Any guidance though would be appreciated. Do you think square is better? I assume it takes up less space but does it perform better as well? I figure if I am gonna have to duct it out anyway I may as well pull the drat permits and do it all myself. I really can't afford the 10k he said it would be to have duct-work installed. Also I live in the Portland, OR area so i may not need a 55 degree rise in temperature; average low in winter is 35 here, although it does sometimes get lower. How much of a difference would this make? I guess it sometimes gets into the 20s here but the furnace guys i talked to seemed to think that over-sizing the furnace was far worse than under-sizing.
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Oct 18, 2013 06:58
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Re: HVAC Be sure to review local code on ducting before you choose a delivery. In most places if you have ductwork in an unopened space you have to seal the joints and possibly the entire run. If you vent through a chimney it will need to be tiled. I guess my point is that it is not as simple as run duct from furnace to rooms. You may also want to find sheet metal shops in your area. Easier for me to call them to make a custom duct than trying to cut and crimp by hand.
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Oct 18, 2013 14:58
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therobit posted:Thanks for the link and the register info. I am still trying to wrap my head around what it all means. I am guessing I should measure each room for volume and then figure out how many cfm I need for each room? Spend the $50 and buy this: http://hvac-calc.com/main.asp It'll let you do a proper Manual J calculation for heat loss (to verify that 70K number), and figure out individual loads for each room. It also appears to have added duct-sizing calculations since I last used it. I don't know if it does a proper manual D, but like I said, heat is less sensitive to perfection. Re: duct type. Round has the least resistance, and is easier to run in straight lines but takeoffs require skill. Square is a little worse, more work in the straightaways, but takeoffs are easier. Flex is easy as hell to run but has quite a bit of resistance, and takeoffs are nigh-impossible. Run the duct calculator and see what you get, but I think the best balance of ease of install is going to be running slightly oversized rectangular trunk to get you to that old trunk, which should give you enough volume there, and then use flex takeoffs which would be a relatively simple transition to install into the square trunk. I have seen square product that sort of snaps/slides together with cleats, so you don't need to be a sheet metal expert for straight runs. I think this is a similar product: http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/hvac/ventilation/Duct-Pipes-Plenums/heating-cooling-products-rectangular-duct-8x10x48
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Oct 18, 2013 15:17
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Qwijib0 posted:Flex is easy as hell to run but has quite a bit of resistance, and takeoffs are nigh-impossible. Eh? You use round sheet metal T's or whatever is an appropriate shape/size/distribution for take-offs on soft duct, same as on round sheet metal duct. Then you zip tie the inner duct in place, pull the insulation over, then pull the outer over that and foil tape it to the sheet metal. If you're a bit OCD lime me you fail tape the inner duct after zip tying. The benefit/trade off between round sheet metal and soft duct is that the soft duct is already insulated but, as you mention, has higher internal resistance, especially if you don't stretch and hang it well.
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Oct 18, 2013 17:05
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Motronic posted:Eh? You use round sheet metal T's or whatever is an appropriate shape/size/distribution for take-offs on soft duct, same as on round sheet metal duct. Then you zip tie the inner duct in place, pull the insulation over, then pull the outer over that and foil tape it to the sheet metal. If you're a bit OCD lime me you fail tape the inner duct after zip tying. I hadn't seen this done, but that makes perfect sense.
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Oct 18, 2013 18:35
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I'm thinking of doing a terrarium or maybe a moss garden in a glass container, and am thinking of re-purposing an old handle of Bombay Dry. I've seen a technique online where people wrap string around a bottle, soak it in acetone, light it ablaze, and then run it under cold water to break it off, but I'm wondering if the square shape of the bottle in question might make that more difficult. Any recommendations on how I can cut off the top 1/3 or so of the bottle?
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Oct 19, 2013 11:09
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Kenning posted:I'm thinking of doing a terrarium or maybe a moss garden in a glass container, and am thinking of re-purposing an old handle of Bombay Dry. I've seen a technique online where people wrap string around a bottle, soak it in acetone, light it ablaze, and then run it under cold water to break it off, but I'm wondering if the square shape of the bottle in question might make that more difficult. Any recommendations on how I can cut off the top 1/3 or so of the bottle? To be clear, burning a line does not work 100% of the time. Being as it is square you might have good luck with a cutting wheel. Worst case scenario you have to drink two more bottles.
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Oct 19, 2013 14:13
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Find a window/mirror place in your area (like a place that does custom windows/mirrors, not a furniture store), they might be equipped to handle it for a small fee. Bonus that they'd probably blast the resultant edge (if you wanted) so you'd have a nice clean, smooth edge.
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Oct 19, 2013 17:28
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Quick question that doesn't seem a good for for any other thread. We inherited an old cedar chest (possibly made in pre ww2 china) without a key for the lock. Before we got it, they pried the locking mechanism off the bottom half of the chest to open it. This is what I'm left with. http://imgur.com/eD88sD9 I can't find any similar locks, and not sure what I should do to open it. Bring it to a locksmith?
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Oct 19, 2013 19:16
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Hell, change it out yourself! http://www.kennedyhardware.com/chest-locks/ Two at the bottom of the page. Left one is about 1-1/2", the right one is 2".
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Oct 20, 2013 03:18
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PainterofCrap posted:Hell, change it out yourself! Thanks. I pried the lock off without doing too much damage. I'll see if one of these fits. Thank you!
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Oct 20, 2013 16:09
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Kenning posted:I'm thinking of doing a terrarium or maybe a moss garden in a glass container, and am thinking of re-purposing an old handle of Bombay Dry. I've seen a technique online where people wrap string around a bottle, soak it in acetone, light it ablaze, and then run it under cold water to break it off, but I'm wondering if the square shape of the bottle in question might make that more difficult. Any recommendations on how I can cut off the top 1/3 or so of the bottle? Your bottle is square but there's a technique that might work if you can find a way to score the sides squarely. The short version is score the bottle once lightly with a glass cutter then pour alternating boiling water and cold water over the score line until it breaks off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFXngPx3w3M
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Oct 20, 2013 18:34
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snickles posted:Quick question that doesn't seem a good for for any other thread. We inherited an old cedar chest (possibly made in pre ww2 china) without a key for the lock. Before we got it, they pried the locking mechanism off the bottom half of the chest to open it. This is what I'm left with. DiResta has your solution http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfN5SBVEAk4&list=PL72327C578CEE958C
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Oct 21, 2013 08:33
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I'll repost this from A&T. I need to replace my dehumidifier's plug and I want to make sure I use the right type. The specifications say "voltage 220-240V ~50hz, wattage 380W, nominal current 1.8A". The stores here have 10A, 16A, and 25A plugs. Which one should I buy?
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Oct 21, 2013 16:54
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Are you talking about the plug on the actual dehumidifier cord? Like the thing you stick in the outlet? They're basically all the same, the 10 Amp one should be fine.
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Oct 21, 2013 18:05
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Yeah, I'm talking about the plug at the end of the cord. Good to know I can use the 10. Thanks.
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Oct 21, 2013 18:35
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