Question 1

Is Home Depot paint any good?

Accepted Answer

Guys and girls,does anyone know how Home Depot brand primer and paints compare to Kelly Moore?Is it justified to spend more money on Kelly Moore? Is there any real advantageto buy more expensive paint in general?BTW I'll be painting wooden surface outside.Thanks,Alex

Question 2

dryer vent into basement?

Accepted Answer

Just wondering....I have to hook up my new dryer. The way the old one was hooked up, thevent goes into the floor, goes across a short distance to the outside.I am planning on replacing the plastic vent hose with metal. However,since this is a century home and the basement tends towards the coldside during the winter....I was thinking...that maybe it would be a wayof heating the basement, just leave the hose open down there, ratherthan connecting it to the outside. Is this a stupid idea? If so...why?thanks

Question 3

Septic solution for cottage/cabin

Accepted Answer

I have a small cottage/cabin (26' x 24'), small budget, where livingfor weekends and vacation, 2 adults. I did the construction myself(extending a 10'x10' existing one).There is not a septic installation; so far the toilet is outside, alsoI made myself an outside shower.There is not running water, only rain water or bring water from aspring (when not raining). I am collecting water into a 250 gal watertank.I am thinking to have an inside toilet and a shower. I did prevue aseparate room for that. I would like to use these facilities duringthe winter also, (ski season), when frequently -20 C.What would be the solution to have an inside toilet and shower? Thereis also a boiler for hot water.Is a septic fosse a good solution if not having running water? Anyother solution?Thank you,Chris

Question 4

Replace a bathroom exhaust motor

Accepted Answer

i need to replace the motor on my bathroom fan.  the brand name of thefan is Aira which search of the internet reveals nothing.in seeking a replacment motor can i just look for a similar motor withshaft lenght and diameter (so the blade fits correctly)??  or is itcritical to also look at the RPM and current ratings?unfortunately taking out the fan assembly to put in a new fan is notan option i can undertakemy fan motor ratings are (and if anyone knows of a suitablereplacement i appreciate your providing that as well)Model VSB-P90ACCWStack = 0.85inShaft = 0.25in diameterShaft = 1.75in lenth

Question 5

Setting  up a Generator

Accepted Answer

Our cabin recently was subjected to multiple days of no electricity during to a bad storm taking out trees and power linesI would like to set up a generator to run the following1)    well water pump 3/4 hp (120v)2)    refrigerator (120v)3)    freezer (120v)4)    hot water heater (240v)5)    stove (240v)I would like to set it up so that is one appliance is drawing power, everything else waits.It would also be nice to set up the chain in the order listed aboveIt should also be noted that:a) the stove is optional since there is a great fire pit where food can be cooked and hot water heated in large enough quantities for hand and dishwashing and sponge baths.b)    the hot water heater is big enough to hold enough water from one heating cycle for all daily hand and dishwashing needs + couple of showers. Which means that unless there are more than 2 people using the cabin, it would only need to run once - possibly in the morning to start the dayc)    the freezer only needs to run once every...

Question 6

Dropped screws down drain

Accepted Answer

First time I've done this.In the laundry room.A box of tons of screws fell down into the sink below.Several ended up right at the drain.I was able to get out most of them delicately, but a few dropped downinto the drain (plastic pipes).Any tips on how to remove them now?I'm thinking possibly coat wire with magnet attached?

Question 7

Airbrushing Polyurethane?

Accepted Answer

Has anyone tried putting on the final finish to a project using anairbrush as the application tool for either water based or oil basedpolyurethane? If so, any recommendations on brand and model of theairbrush?

Question 8

Central Heating Service

Accepted Answer

Hi peopleWe've had a gas central heating system for about 8 years now and it'snever been serviced.The missus is getting a bit worried (speaking to the neighbours) thatit's a bit dangerous to leave it as long.I think that an annual service is unneccessary and we should onlybother to get it fixed if something goes wrong.What is the point of a service ?Any comments welcome.

Question 9

Adding loft insulation

Accepted Answer

Had someone round to day to add insulation to the existing. Theyturned up, swore about the guy who quoted originally and left. As Ipointed out, if it was easy, I'd have done it myself....The roof has a 17.5 degree pitch, so there's basically enough space tocrawl down the middle - it's 5m wide, so if you do the math, you'llfind that's a a whopping 75cm clearance in the centre.  Any work closeto the eaves requires lying flat and inching along the 40cm spanbetween rafters. Falling through the ceiling isn't an issue - gettingstuck is! My wife says the guy who showed up was pretty tall :)There is currently about 75mm of blown insulation. I can't get tooclose to the eaves, but I could push the blown stuff to the edges (andtherefore increase the height) and then lay new insulation in thecentral space - starting at the ends, and retreating over boards as Igo. I'll probably use the cheapest glass-wool style insulation and aimto go 200mm deep. Any more than that and I reckon ventilation will...

Question 10

Small generator

Accepted Answer

Can someone help me figure out what I need?  I am looking to buy a small generator to run my 2 aquariums should there be a power outage.  I have some expensive fish that need high temperatures and to lose them could cost hundreds, and some have taken 5 years to get to full maturity to breed from and they are hard to replace at this age.  Anyway hopefully I will never need to use it but I want to get one just in case.  I will need to be able to run 2 x 150watt heaters and various pumps and filters that take about 50 watts total.  So to be on the safe side I'll need to run about 400w.  None of the descriptions I have looked at gives me a clue if a generator will do this, mainly because I actually don't understand the description and what they are talking about!!Can anyone point me to a small reasonably priced generator that would cope?CheersAngela

Question 11

60VAC in ceiling wires with the light switch turned off

Accepted Answer

Was replacing a two-bulb typical ceiling light fixture as the bulbs keep burning out seemingly prematurely (although I don't count the hours).With the light switch off, I remove the old and start to put in the new and as I do so my hand burns for a split second as it brushes against the black (hot) wire. Whoa!I get down from the wooden ladder and grab my voltmeter.Lo and behold, 57.8VAC between the black (hot) and white (neutral).I pull all the tangled wires out but I don't see a visible bare metal touching but I haven't checked the light switch as it just happened.Do you think the constant 60VAC was why bulbs were burning out?(Most were the curly kind as I was trying to use them all up.)The replacement is an LED Flush Mount Costco item 1600246. the 60VAC isn't coming from the one light switch in that side room, then I'm not going to be able to figure out where the ceiling fixture hot is getting the 60VAC from.Do you think the constant 60VAC will damage the new LED light?

Question 12

Ceiling fan and light don't work separately

Accepted Answer

I installed a ceiling fan with a light and there are two switches.  I did the wiring properly.  The fan and the light now work on 1 switch not separate.  And when you turn it on with one switch and then turn on the other switch if turns it off.  Any ideas?

Frequently Asked Questions