Question 1

Need Advice On Heating System

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I am adding approx 1000 sq ft to my 1800 sq ft house.  It is 90 yrs old, 2floors, with an oil furnace and hot water radiators all on one zone.  Nocentral air.  We want to add central air and that is the problem.  Ourcontractor says we have two choices.  (A) Keep the existing system (newradiators in the addition) and install high velocity a/c.  He says this isnecessary because the existing pipes for the radiators leave little room fornormal size air ducts.  (B) Completely replace the heating system we havewith a hydro-air system, which would clear the way for traditional ducts.Option A would give us 3 zones (existing and 2 for the addition), whileOption B would give is 2 zones (1 up and 1 down).  I am nervous aboutswitching heating systems as the current one works great.  What is thetypical installation cost between Options A and B?  Are there efficiencydifferences?  Are there other options?   Thank you.

Question 2

Asbestos

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I live in 50+ year old house. My walls insulation is black one. I don't knowwhat it is it does not look like fiberglass. The insulation is very looseand torn. I am currently installing new windows enlarging the openings. Ithought about ripping off old sheetrock on outer walls, adding R-13 facedfiberglass insulation and then putting new sheetrock. I am worried aboutasbestos in old insulation and sheetrock. How can I figure out if theycontain asbestos and may be dangerous to be disturbed? What else besidesvinyl tile may contain asbestos in old house?

Question 3

Maytag Problem -- Clothes are being ripped

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Hello everyone,     About a year ago I had posted that my clothes are beingconsistently torn by out Maytag washer MAV7504EWW 2 1/2 years old now.Since the time that I had posted I had replaced the agitator as therewere no physical defects in the tub itself. The agitator end sitsabout 1/2" in the air from the base of the tub which to me seemsexcessive. I still believe that this is causing my clothes to somehowget jammed in between the tub and agitator causing the tears to occur.I also found out that there is a little play in the drive shaft whichis causing the agitator gap to increase even more. I have verifiedthat the agitator bolt is secure to the drive shaft to that's not theissue.I also have tried a more delicate speed setting as well as loadingfewer clothes but still have the same problem. Does anyone have anysuggestions on what else to try? To me this seems like a design flawon this model.Nick

Question 4

Snow blower power ratings

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I am looking for a new snow blower and have discovered that the power rating of the engines are no longer in "Horse Power" but in "Foot Pounds" if given at all. Sometimes all that is given is the CC's of the engine.Even the people selling these machines don't know what the "Horse Power" ratings are so that old geezers like myself can understand what is going on. Does anyone have any general rules regarding the conversion of Foot Pounds or CC's to Horse Power?

Question 5

Adding second thermostat?

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Hi,We've currently got a wired programmable thermostat downstairs in the lounge, this works great keeping the downstairs nice and warm but in the evening and during the night the upstairs is a little colder.What would be best way of adding a second upstairs thermostat - is it possible to run a second programmable thermostat in parallel as the thermostat simply makes an on connection?Ideally I would like the downstairs to control the heating during the day, and upstairs at night - having a baby we just leave the heating on permanently and let the thermostat control when it runs.Si

Question 6

Wood burning stoves

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We've got a wood burning stove in our house. Or at least, I assume it's a wood burner, as the previous owners put it in. What affects what I can put in it (ie, can I chuck coal in?) and so on?

Question 7

Polishing my headlights

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3 weeks ago I polished my headlight lenses. They came out great. I had replaced a bulb and noticed again how cloudy they were, 2005 car. It took about 2 hours but would have taken less if my back didn't hurtand I had to sit down over and over, and if then I didn't startlistening to the radio on the day that the presidential election wascalled.  So maybe an hour. Instructions said to wash the lenses. Also to mask the painted part around the lenses.   I had 3 rolls ofmasking tape, the youngest 25 years old.  I checked in advance and thefirst roll worked fine, stuck fine, came off fine, but on the day I didthis, I couldn't tear off an 10" piece without it ripping at 4 inches.I didn't test for that.  But the 3rd roll worked. Use Surface Activator, from the second kit, near the bottom. Then for this kit, 3M Headlight Lens Restoration System, 39008  said: One kit may not be enough.  Ugh, now they tell me. I chose this kit because it didnt' expect me to do the sanding by hand. For the first...

Question 8

Cutting into drywall

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I never liked cutting into drywall because you never know what's in thewall. Could be electrical, could be plumbing, could be HVAC, could bethis...

Question 9

Do I need a sewer vent pipe for an additional new bathroom?

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Hello all,I am planning to add a bathroom to a bedroom. The new one will be about 20 ft or so away from the existing one.I am in San Jose CA.Would I need a vent pipe for this new bathroom?Thanks!Deguza

Question 10

Workbench Height - At the Wrist. Good Idea?

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I've been doing some reading about the proper workbench height. A lotof sources say that for "general work" the proper height is right at the wrist level of the user. Adjustments are made from there for specific types of work. you were going to build a general purpose workbench for a new homeowner,would you follow the wrist height rule? The person I have in mind is not a woodworker. She knows which end of a screwdriver to use, but she might not always use the right bit. ;-)

Question 11

Kerosene vs diesel

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Our oil burner was recently converted from diesel to kerosene. Due to a faulty level gauge the tank  ran dry. By mistake I threw a couple of gallons of red diesel  into the tank. I can get some kerosene from a local filling station. How much kerosene might I need to dilute the red diesel?What damage might burning red diesel do to a kerosene system. ( I wasn't here when the burner was converted but I imagined it only involved changing he injector/nozzle.Sods law. These problems only occur at the weekend when service isn't available never mind a refill of the tank

Question 12

lawn mower keys

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Are sone, most, all of the riding lawmower keys the same ?I just bought a John Deere x590  and noticed the key looked like the same notches (teeth) as the one for my old Husqvarna mower.  Tried them and either key would work in the other brand of mower.

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