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I might have a problem. I have an older house with wood siding that I just had repainted. I'm concerned because in places there are long horizontal cracks forming in the fresh paint at the inside of the overhang. The painter has said it isn't a big deal and implied it could even be a good thing to let moisture out. Is he feeding me a like of bull and should I be concerned?
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Oct 31, 2013 00:06
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:I'm not really an expert on lumber, but I kind of thing that if your fence isn't rotting out after 40 years, then you've probably spent so much on the lumber that you won't mind paying a bit extra in time and money to use screws instead of nails. Wood can last for a very long time when it's properly protected, even if it's just untreated pine. 40 years is not unheard of. Paint isn't just for looks. Totally TWISTED posted:I guess I've just had two houses with lovely fencing then. Nails backing out and boards warping within 1 year. Sounds like low budget rough hewn that wasn't dried properly or even just wasn't properly coated depending on your weather. Motronic fucked around with this message at 00:52 on Oct 31, 2013 |
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Oct 31, 2013 00:49
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Turnquiet posted:The original plan was to cut the 2x4 or 4x4s and fit them internally into the hole. Given the width of my TV versus the width of the hole it makes much more sense to put the 2x4s in front of the hole to span it like you said. It would be cheaper too since I wouldn't need to buy ties. I forget the exact width of the hole but the TV is a hair over 58 inches, so I think I have between 8-10 inches to make sure no one can see the bare studs. And I would want to use bolts, not deck screws or anything, right? Yep, lag bolts like killing flies mentioned should be plenty to mount the 2x4s to the wall. *in theory* there are studs at the left and right sides of that box and one bolt per side into a stud should be fine. If you're OK with a little more patching, it may not be a terrible idea to cut a small hole an inch or two outside the box in the covered-by-tv area and feel around if a stud finder doesn't positively identify anything.
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Oct 31, 2013 01:21
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Slifter posted:I might have a problem. I have an older house with wood siding that I just had repainted. I'm concerned because in places there are long horizontal cracks forming in the fresh paint at the inside of the overhang. The painter has said it isn't a big deal and implied it could even be a good thing to let moisture out. Is he feeding me a like of bull and should I be concerned? Sounds like bullshit to me; you paint something, it should retain a smooth finish. Got a photo?
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Oct 31, 2013 01:39
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Question about basement wall cracks...We've got one or two hairline cracks in our basement walls that are going to be covered up shortly (finishing the basement). As far as I know, they've never leaked any water but the guy doing the finishing said we should prob seal them up now before the walls go up rather than wait for something to happen after. If they've never leaked before can I get away something like this paint-on epoxy or do I need something more substantial like this injection molding deal?
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Oct 31, 2013 16:17
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I need a new venting system for my gas furnace (currently indirect venting intaking from indoor air, and the exhaust vent is 2" when it should be 3" for my furnace, and also there horizontal runs don't slope down at all) and was going to go with a direct venting system using 3" PVC. I'm looking at about 14' each for both intake and exhaust, needing to go through two masonry walls. I've been quoted $450. Seem reasonable?
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Oct 31, 2013 16:20
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I'm trying to attach a TV mounting bracket to a wall with multipurpose 10mm wall plugs. One of the mount points is just hollow wall rather than a stud, and the directions on the wall plug package say to drill a 9mm hole if the wall is hollow. When I do this though, I can't get the plug in more than halfway. Should I just force it in the rest of the way, or widen the hole to 10mm?
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Oct 31, 2013 16:28
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Sleepstupid posted:Question about basement wall cracks...We've got one or two hairline cracks in our basement walls that are going to be covered up shortly (finishing the basement). As far as I know, they've never leaked any water but the guy doing the finishing said we should prob seal them up now before the walls go up rather than wait for something to happen after. If they've never leaked before can I get away something like this paint-on epoxy or do I need something more substantial like this injection molding deal? If you can afford it get a sprayfoam company to come out and waterproof and insulate at same time. Likely the answer here is drylok. But post a picture.
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Oct 31, 2013 16:59
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Baruch Obamawitz posted:I need a new venting system for my gas furnace (currently indirect venting intaking from indoor air, and the exhaust vent is 2" when it should be 3" for my furnace, and also there horizontal runs don't slope down at all) and was going to go with a direct venting system using 3" PVC. I'm looking at about 14' each for both intake and exhaust, needing to go through two masonry walls. I've been quoted $450. Seem reasonable? That's about inline with what I'd expect, when I had my tankless water heater installed it was about that amount to run new venting (through the roof in my case).
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Oct 31, 2013 17:36
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Motronic posted:Wood can last for a very long time when it's properly protected, even if it's just untreated pine. 40 years is not unheard of. I disagree on painting for protection. Yes, paint does protect wood well BUT one single crack or unpainted section will introduce moisture that then cannot escape and will rot out wood even quicker. My opinion on most outdoor wood is to choose a rot resistant species and leave it unpainted so it can breathe
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Oct 31, 2013 17:47
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Sleepstupid posted:Question about basement wall cracks...We've got one or two hairline cracks in our basement walls that are going to be covered up shortly (finishing the basement). As far as I know, they've never leaked any water but the guy doing the finishing said we should prob seal them up now before the walls go up rather than wait for something to happen after. If they've never leaked before can I get away something like this paint-on epoxy or do I need something more substantial like this injection molding deal? What type of basement is it? CMU or poured walls? If it is CMU you will be filling for days and it will probably never seal, water will find a way. A poured wall you can probably patch on the inside. You may have to dig out on the outside of the foundation to actually waterproof and be sure that water will not get into your newly finished basement. If you only paint it with waterproofing on the inside and water tries to come through it will probably break through eventually.
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Oct 31, 2013 18:04
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Motronic posted:People who aren't familiar with building tend to overbuild. Using screws or even ring shank nails in this situation is exactly that. You have a weird definition of overbuilding. This might come down to the type of climate the fence will be subject to, but I can tell you that screws are absolutely the correct choice for my area. Paint, as you later suggested, would also be a bad choice for this area. But, you are right, nails would be fine. It's not like the thing would fall apart in a week. That doesn't mean that screws aren't a better choice, and this is coming from someone with plenty of familiarity with building, thank you. Making an assumption like that would be just as asinine as my asserting that someone who is familiar with doing things as cheap and quick as possible tend to underbuild. There's a lot of middle ground between the two, so there's no point in false dichotomies. For the poster building the fence, don't worry about taking my word for it. I did some more digging around, and it looks like the answer is pretty much "use whatever is easiest". Here's an article I found that actually compares pullout and shear loads: here. The answer he gives - there isn't much difference, but he generally recommends screws. Also, "In general, screws have much greater pullout power than similar sized nails but slightly less shear capacity." So if you live in an area that's prone to climate swings, or are otherwise worried about pullout, then screws are the way to go. It is absolutely not overbuilding to use the right fastener for the job. If you're not worried about it, or just want to go quicker and cheaper, then use whatever.
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Oct 31, 2013 18:39
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Luigi's Discount Porn Bin posted:I'm trying to attach a TV mounting bracket to a wall with multipurpose 10mm wall plugs. One of the mount points is just hollow wall rather than a stud, and the directions on the wall plug package say to drill a 9mm hole if the wall is hollow. When I do this though, I can't get the plug in more than halfway. Should I just force it in the rest of the way, or widen the hole to 10mm? Gently tap it in the rest of the way with a hammer.
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Oct 31, 2013 18:42
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Any opinion on self-drilling screws vs. drilling pilot holes manually? Is there some rule of thumb for when you should drill a pilot hole vs. when you can just send the screw straight in sans pilot?
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Oct 31, 2013 18:43
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dwoloz posted:I disagree on painting for protection. Yes, paint does protect wood well BUT one single crack or unpainted section will introduce moisture that then cannot escape and will rot out wood even quicker. I'm not sure how to even respond to that, but I'll give it a shot: Latex paints allow water migration. This water migration is very small from the outside of the surface to what it is protecting due to the realities of basic physics. However should a crack form and allow water to soak in, it will come back out through the crack AND surrounding paint. Cracks should not form for quite some time if the wood has been properly dried, handled, primed, and painted. I also wasn't suggesting one singe paint job was going to last 40 years. Killing Flies posted:You have a weird definition of overbuilding. If "weird" has been redefined to mean spending more time or money on something than is financially reasonable based on expected duration of need or taking on unfavorable additional expenses for a minimally extended service life then yes. My definition is "weird." Motronic fucked around with this message at 18:50 on Oct 31, 2013 |
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Oct 31, 2013 18:46
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Cpt.Wacky posted:Gently tap it in the rest of the way with a hammer. 
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Oct 31, 2013 19:05
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^^^I use snaptoggles or snapskrus on everything and just throw away whatever crap things come with. Good to keep a pack on hand and cheap for the amount of frustration they saveTooMuchAbstraction posted:Any opinion on self-drilling screws vs. drilling pilot holes manually? Is there some rule of thumb for when you should drill a pilot hole vs. when you can just send the screw straight in sans pilot? Depends on what you are making I think. I pre-drill in situations that would risk splitting the wood, if I need to countersink, or some sort of precision/alignment to make it look decent instead of something that I freehanded. ntd fucked around with this message at 19:09 on Oct 31, 2013 |
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Oct 31, 2013 19:06
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I always pre-drill because it doesn't take a huge amount of time and its better for the wood. You can probably get away without most of the time, but just comes down to how much time you want to spend.
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Oct 31, 2013 21:06
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I'm looking to frame a wall in my basement so that I can throw some wall shelving up. I have existing tile that may have asbestos, but I'm not sure. Is there any harm in nailing the sill through the tile into the concrete below instead of pulling it off?
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Nov 1, 2013 20:33
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CRIP EATIN BREAD posted:I'm looking to frame a wall in my basement so that I can throw some wall shelving up. I have existing tile that may have asbestos, but I'm not sure. Is there any harm in nailing the sill through the tile into the concrete below instead of pulling it off? As long as the tile doesn't become friable (i.e. fragment into little tiny bits) then: no. You should be fine.
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Nov 1, 2013 23:13
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I think I have a leak in my upstairs bathroom's plumbing. When the bathroom is used (haven't narrowed it down to sink/toilet/shower), the ceiling in the sun room leaks. Outdoor shot, showing the sun room (foreground) and the upstairs bathroom (thingy poking out of the roof on the second floor). Immediately beneath the bathroom is the kitchen.  Shot of the sun room ceiling:  My best guess is that water is leaking from a pipe or something in the bathroom, running along the interior walls, somehow bridging the gap into the sun room (which was added after the house was built, and turns the previous door-to-the-back-yard into an "interior" door), and then flowing along the slightly slanted roof until it gets to this point, where it drips down. So what do I do about this? First thing presumably is figure out which particular device in the bathroom causes the leaks, but then is it just a matter of tearing open the wall, ripping out some piping, and replacing it? After turning off the water of course.
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Nov 2, 2013 17:21
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:I think I have a leak in my upstairs bathroom's plumbing. When the bathroom is used (haven't narrowed it down to sink/toilet/shower), the ceiling in the sun room leaks. Well I imagine it could be lots of things but one thing that can definitely cause gross leaks is a bad wax ring on the toilet. That will cause it to leak when it flushes. I recently went through replacing this myself (luckily it leaked out from under the toilet and not through the ceiling, though the plaster ceiling below the toilet has clearly been repaired at some point in the house's lifetime). I'm no plumbing expert but in terms of plumbing things that are likely to wear out I think the wax ring is reasonably high on the list. Like you said 1) find the leak 2) assess damage 3) deal with damage
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Nov 3, 2013 04:23
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asdf32 posted:Like you said 1) find the leak 2) assess damage 3) deal with damage This is the right way to do it. If your leak is only from when the bathroom is used, then it's definitely a drain leak. A leak that has been there long enough to leave a ceiling mark means that it should similarly be old enough to leave a floor mark. Look under your sink and see if there's a mark on the floor/cabinet underneath. As for the toilet, it could definitely be a bad wax ring like asdf32 mentioned. Is the toilet bolted down securely to the floor, or is it wobbly at all? Since that seal is wax, it isn't really flexible, so a wobbly toilet is a good sign of a wax ring leak. When you place a new one on, it just gets squeezed down until it fills all of the gap between toilet bottom and the pipe flange. Wax rings are pretty cheap and changing one is pretty easy. We got tips in the plumbing thread stickied here if you need them. By the way, the best way to clean up the old wax ring is with a putty knife, a garbage bag and maybe a couple rags. And try not to get the old wax on anything else. Wax is waterproof, so it's a bitch to clean up. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 09:34 on Nov 3, 2013 |
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Nov 3, 2013 09:30
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My apartment is old and dusty and moldy and since it's getting to be colder, I've been getting more and more concerned with the quality of the air we're breathing. Last year, I had a very brief stint trying to sell Rainbow Vacuum cleaners, and while I didn't gain any money from the whole thing, I definitely gained some insight onto the concepts behind them and why they work the way they do. I've since changed jobs to one that pays decently, and now I'm looking into trying to construct an air filtration device that'll do the same job, just for far, far less money. My only stumbling block right now is finding a cheap, and preferably quiet motor to move air through the unit. Does anyone have any suggestions on a type of motor, or a product that I could get for cheap and rip the motor out of? I'm not looking for ULTIMATE SUCTION or anything like that, just something that I can turn on and get a nice, quiet, steady flow of air through it.
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Nov 3, 2013 15:30
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20" furnace filter stuck to a standard box fan?
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Nov 3, 2013 15:50
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neogeo0823 posted:Does anyone have any suggestions on a type of motor, or a product that I could get for cheap and rip the motor out of? I'm not looking for ULTIMATE SUCTION or anything like that, just something that I can turn on and get a nice, quiet, steady flow of air through it. You know, that reminds me a lot of an AMA on Reddit a few days ago that was surprisingly big. I remember one comment reply being about using a vacuum for air filtering. You talking about a Rainbow reminded me of it and how the pro said they suck, err, don't suck, whatever.
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Nov 3, 2013 15:50
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neogeo0823 posted:Does anyone have any suggestions on a type of motor, or a product that I could get for cheap and rip the motor out of? I'm not looking for ULTIMATE SUCTION or anything like that, just something that I can turn on and get a nice, quiet, steady flow of air through it. From my understanding of computer cases, the main determinant for noise when moving air is the RPM of the fan. You can get the same airflow for less noise by using a bigger, slower fan (or multiple same-sized fans in parallel). EDIT: thanks for the advice regarding the bathroom, folks. I'll poke around in there today and see what I can find without ripping the walls open. TooMuchAbstraction fucked around with this message at 16:52 on Nov 3, 2013 |
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Nov 3, 2013 16:44
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eddiewalker posted:20" furnace filter stuck to a standard box fan? No, because that would require me to change the filter every once in a while, which costs money. It would be big, ugly, and most importantly, it would not be a sufficiently complex project to keep me entertained. What I'm envisioning is a bucket, 5gal or smaller, that I can fill with water to a line, put the lid on, and plug in and let it run while I'm at work or whatever, and it'll be quiet enough that my dog will be able to deal with it. So far, my googling has led me to this 12V squirrel cage blower, which is nice and cheap, but I'm not sure if 16CFM would be sufficient or not. I do like the squirrel cage design though, because it's compact, and I can attach it directly to the lid of the bucket. Maybe I could buy 2 and get double the air flow!  As an aside, This is my first time looking at Karlsson Robotics, and I think it's my new favorite parts site. It's got so many neat things listed for pretty awesome prices. TooMuchAbstraction posted:From my understanding of computer cases, the main determinant for noise when moving air is the RPM of the fan. You can get the same airflow for less noise by using a bigger, slower fan (or multiple same-sized fans in parallel). Hmm. That is true. Maybe I should get 2 of those fans then.
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Nov 3, 2013 16:53
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neogeo0823 posted:My apartment is old and dusty and moldy and since it's getting to be colder, I've been getting more and more concerned with the quality of the air we're breathing. In conjunction with the filtration system I assume that you're addressing the mold and dust issues as well. I was in a similar boat a few years ago and worked out a rent credit with the landlord to replace some drywall, remove the carpets and sand/stain the wood floors underneath, and repaint most of the unit. Then just got a Hepa-filtered Ridgid shop vac and a swiffer mop and it was easy to keep clean (it was a small apt though).
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Nov 3, 2013 17:09
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neogeo0823 posted:Hmm. That is true. Maybe I should get 2 of those fans then. I'm not sure it'll work if the fans are in series, and I don't know what the ramifications are of trying to merge their airflows; you might create a lot of turbulence rather than improve your CFM. I'm not clear on what your plan is, but I'd say get the biggest fan you can that will fit your bucket, and if that doesn't get you enough airflow, duplicate the entire setup with a second bucket.
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Nov 3, 2013 17:09
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socketwrencher posted:In conjunction with the filtration system I assume that you're addressing the mold and dust issues as well. I was in a similar boat a few years ago and worked out a rent credit with the landlord to replace some drywall, remove the carpets and sand/stain the wood floors underneath, and repaint most of the unit. Then just got a Hepa-filtered Ridgid shop vac and a swiffer mop and it was easy to keep clean (it was a small apt though). Uh, yeah, that's not happening. Very long story short, our apartment is owned by slumlords who ignore even the town health department. We have mold issues in the windowless bathroom and dust and dander from the two of us and our dog. Also, we're planning on getting the gently caress out of dodge when out lease is up this coming spring, so I'm not about to try and do anything that would increase the value of this place in any way. Besides, a fun little project like this can be useful wherever I go, as opposed to bargaining with landlords. TooMuchAbstraction posted:I'm not sure it'll work if the fans are in series, and I don't know what the ramifications are of trying to merge their airflows; you might create a lot of turbulence rather than improve your CFM. I'm not clear on what your plan is, but I'd say get the biggest fan you can that will fit your bucket, and if that doesn't get you enough airflow, duplicate the entire setup with a second bucket. Would a lovely mspaint help to visualize what I'm thinking?  Basically, when filled and off, the water line will be just above the bottom edge of the divider. The divider is in place to force the air down into, and through the water. The fan(s) would produce enough suction to pull the air under the divider, through the water, and out. I'm thinking of using squirrel cage fans because they're compact, and it's very easy to cut a hole in the lid of the bucket and bolt the fan casing right to it.
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Nov 3, 2013 17:34
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neogeo0823 posted:Uh, yeah, that's not happening. Very long story short, our apartment is owned by slumlords who ignore even the town health department. We have mold issues in the windowless bathroom and dust and dander from the two of us and our dog. Also, we're planning on getting the gently caress out of dodge when out lease is up this coming spring, so I'm not about to try and do anything that would increase the value of this place in any way. Besides, a fun little project like this can be useful wherever I go, as opposed to bargaining with landlords. Yeah I see what you mean. Good luck- and you're right about projects like this, they're a lot of fun and educational to boot.
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Nov 3, 2013 17:41
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neogeo0823 posted:
Fans are really bad at creating static pressure, which is what you would need to lift that water. Also, remember that water is really heavy, and if your picture is at all to scale, you're going to have a large area of water that you'll be trying to lift with the lovely static pressure of the fan, which means a large volume, which means a large weight. If the area of water is even close to the size of the fan, and you're trying to lift it even a half an inch, you're looking at quite a few cubic inches of water. What you would really need is some sort of vacuum pump. In fact, a plain old vacuum would probably work great, or at least far better than a fan.
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Nov 3, 2013 19:44
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Bad Munki posted:Fans are really bad at creating static pressure, which is what you would need to lift that water. Also, remember that water is really heavy, and if your picture is at all to scale, you're going to have a large area of water that you'll be trying to lift with the lovely static pressure of the fan, which means a large volume, which means a large weight. If the area of water is even close to the size of the fan, and you're trying to lift it even a half an inch, you're looking at quite a few cubic inches of water. Hmm. The picture is almost definitely not to scale, but that's a very good point. I didn't want to use an actual vacuum motor, as it would be noisy as hell. I was hoping to find a decently quiet solution instead. What if the fan was placed on the inward side, pushing a relatively small amount of water downward?
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Nov 3, 2013 21:09
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Do you own or rent? A hepa filter and leaving your furnace fan running would help. Also a couple of those super hardy low light plants will contribute. I haven't heard anything in a while about them but there used to be "ionic" or somesuch filter/fans that are supposed to gather dust etc.
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Nov 3, 2013 21:47
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XmasGiftFromWife posted:Do you own or rent? A hepa filter and leaving your furnace fan running would help. Also a couple of those super hardy low light plants will contribute. As he said earlier, he's renting from a slumlord, so doesn't have much in the way of support. The Ionic Breeze "air filters" got pulled from the market after they were proven to not work; they simply don't move enough air to be effective filters. Of course, that's also why they're so quiet. A HEPA filter would be the normal approach, though, and yeah, you have to replace them from time to time.
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Nov 3, 2013 22:13
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neogeo0823 posted:Hmm. The picture is almost definitely not to scale, but that's a very good point. I didn't want to use an actual vacuum motor, as it would be noisy as hell. I was hoping to find a decently quiet solution instead. What if the fan was placed on the inward side, pushing a relatively small amount of water downward? You're still trying to maintain a static pressure with the fan. It might work better as a pusher than a puller, but probably not significantly.
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Nov 3, 2013 22:26
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neogeo0823 posted:What I'm envisioning is a bucket, 5gal or smaller, that I can fill with water to a line, put the lid on, and plug in and let it run while I'm at work or whatever, So you want to use a water trap that exhausts back to inside air (which also humidifies the air) in a place where you have mold issues? Doesn't sounds like a good plan, unless you mold issues are just on outside walls/windows from condensation and lack of meaningful insulation. And even then it will exacerbate the issue. In any case, water traps are noisy, as you need to run something like a shop vac to create sufficient suction for them to work (is what I use for cleaning oil furnaces to trap the oil soot). Or you could get into an elaborate and more quiet system with more expensive and larger motors and traps, negating the "I don't want to use a ($2) filter because I'll have to change it and that costs money."
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Nov 4, 2013 00:23
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XmasGiftFromWife posted:Do you own or rent? A hepa filter and leaving your furnace fan running would help. Also a couple of those super hardy low light plants will contribute. What would the plants do?
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Nov 4, 2013 01:20
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Motronic posted:So you want to use a water trap that exhausts back to inside air (which also humidifies the air) in a place where you have mold issues? Doesn't sounds like a good plan, unless you mold issues are just on outside walls/windows from condensation and lack of meaningful insulation. And even then it will exacerbate the issue. The mold problem is pretty much confined to the bathroom, which is windowless and has just a decently underpowered vent, but I get your point on that one. quote:In any case, water traps are noisy, as you need to run something like a shop vac to create sufficient suction for them to work (is what I use for cleaning oil furnaces to trap the oil soot). Or you could get into an elaborate and more quiet system with more expensive and larger motors and traps, negating the "I don't want to use a ($2) filter because I'll have to change it and that costs money." Well, if there's no solution, then that's fine, but I have to try anyway. The Rainbow Vacuum I used had 2 speeds, and the low speed was quiet enough that if you ran it in a corner and had, say, the tv on, you wouldn't really notice it. That's really my goal with this, something quiet and not-really-powerful that'll passively help to clean the air in the room.
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Nov 4, 2013 01:56
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