OK, it got cold here the last few days so I "surveyed" my house and found at least three returns that actually had dampers on them. one is a 6x10, no problem, but two of them are 5x10 and built into the baseboards so replacing with a 6x10 is not an option without some trim carpentry. has anyone ever seen a 5x10 return air grille? I'd as soon not bust up the dampers in case I ever need them.
yes, my house was apparently built by nonconformists.
thanks
nate
correction
I just went at one of them with a razor blade, putty knife and hammer and got it free of the baseboard - it's actually 5"x12".
any ideas? IANASMG (I Am Not A Sheetmetal Guy) nor am I a particularly skilled trim carpenter...
nate
Piece of hardwood plank of the correct species, a drill press, and a lot of patience? Lay out a suitably artistic pattern, drill all the holes, and finish to match the baseboard? Or if that is TOO artistic, 2 slotted sticks on ends, a several pieces of lath in middle, held together with glue and brads, again finished to match?
-- aem sends...
=BF=BDI'd as
try a HVAC contractor or just remove the dampers. a dremel tool may do the trick
On 4/8/2009 6:15 PM Nate Nagel spake thus:
Nate: is that the outside or inside dimension? I checked Reggio Register's site
That's the dimension of the duct opening in the wall. I'm assuming that is what it's supposed to be, it's actually something like 4-7/8" but close enough to 5" that I assume that is the nominal dimension.
nate
The old ones are stamped painted steel, I was hoping to match. There are supplies the same size as well.
nate
Did you try RV parts? Sometimes they are odd sizes and many hardware stores in my area have RV vents in stock. But they are in the RV/mobile home section, not with the other stuff.
Post a picture somewhere, with a yardstick sitting close to it? It may set off some bells.
-- aem sends...
I just looked in an old Grainger catalog I had on the shelf. No look there.
There was a 5.5x9.5 register vent. They may have used something along those lines or as another poster said even mobile home parts which are never a standard size.
If you'll invite me over, the answer will be yes. Why not just paint them a neutral color?
Well, I was originally thinking brass, but that was my next plan. Unfortunately that will involve stripping, de-rusting, straightening, and making them work again.
nate
These two can be done at one time, in 3 or 4 minutes each using a bench grinder with a wire wheel on it**. Maybe a somewhat longer if you want almost ALL the parts that don't show, but it's fun. Heck, maybe you won't even need to paint htem after the wire wheel treatment. You need to do a few things to find out how amazing it is. I used to be upset when I let a tool or something rust, but not anymore. Where goggles, the wires sometimes come out while the wheel is spinning, although I don't think any have hit my eye yet.
**You can't use an electric drill for this. It's alwayy quite hard to use an electric drill with wire wheel or a grindstone. So this is a good excuse to buy a bench grinder, which are not very expensive. ACtually for yeears I used an almost-toy combination bench grinder, table sabre saw. And now I use a spare furnace-fan-size motor driving a belt which drives a cheap thing that holds two wheels, all mounted to a board, but a real bench grinder is not very expensive either.Good practice in metal repair. Also, I bend and break a little of everything I throw away, so I have practice bending things, and I'll know how much it takes to break various metals etc.
P&M
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