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The drain system is improperly vented or was set up to handle standard toilets. When the increased fast flow if the power assisted toilets is present, the vent pipe can’t supply make-up air quickly enough, a vacuum is created, and bubbling or gurgling occurs at the other toilets. These power assisted toilets came along when standard toilets couldn’t flush properly with 1.6 gallons of water. PATs have created their own set of problems. After 15 years , the manufacturers are finally offering functioning toilets that don’t need power assist.
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The whole answer is that you can not cut residential steel doors but you can cut commercial steel doors.
Residential steel doors are made in such a way that cutting them removes the enclosing edge of the door. The doors prefinishing, weatherstripping, and insulated core don’t respond well to re-welding the edges. Special sizes can be ordered from the manufacturer and, in the end, would be less expensive than re-fabricating a stock size. If your local building supply salesman says he can’t order special sizes, talk to his supervisor or go to another store.
Commercial steel doors are made in a way that the bottom or top can be easily cut in small amounts without harming the door. Side cuts and larger top/bottom cuts can made but require a lot of work, welding, and experienced skill. Commercial steel doors are not available in the range of decorative styles you find in residential doors. They are also generally heavier and set up for larger hinges.
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It depends upon several factors:
1. What type of load is being supported? Is this a floor and if so what is the use of the room (storage, sleeping, living)? Is this a ceiling and if so what is above (floored or unfloored attic, another room)? Is this a roof and if so do you live in an area where snowfall occurs (even rarely)?
2. What building code governs at the site of construction? Standard, Uniform, BOCA, IBC?
3. What is the spacing to the next repetitive member?
4. What is the finish material on thewood member? None, gypsum board, plaster, metal, masonry?
5. Are there any expected or possible unusual loads to be placed on the member? Safe, book storage, waterbed, etc.?
6. Is the loading temporary or permanent.
As you can see the simple answer you seek involves a lot of questions and considerations. Beam spans (and I assume you are using this as a beam or joist) are limited by deflection (amount of allowable sag), compression or bearing failure, or by shear failure (tearing of the wood) and include a built-in safety factor that allows for defective materials and unexpected loads. Bracing to prevent rollover is also a consideration. Check with your local building offical. He may have a simple chart that considers the worst case senarios and shows maximum spans he will allow. Some codebooks include such charts. Otherwise, an engineer or architect can custom calculate the conditions and may certify a greater span but the cost is usually not reasonable for small projects.
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A three way switch is the easiest way to do what you describe. The only drawback is that the switch may be ON in the up position one day and in the down position the next day.
It can also be wired with a low voltage relay controlled by rocker switches in each bathroom. This method costs more, requires greater knowledge to install, and parts are harder to find. With this arrangement pressing the top of the swittch is always ON and the bottom is always OFF.
There is at least one other method involving a solid state controller but the cost of an additional fan is a less expensive way to go.
Someone else out there may have further suggestions.
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There are some solvents available for cyanoacrylate but there is no telling what effects they may have on your countertop. I have had success removing small spots using a razorblade scraper. Hold it at a shallow angle to prevent cutting the plastic laminate and use small diagonal strokes against the glue. This works best if the Plastic laminate has a gloss finish. Superglue on countertops seems to be a common problem. You would think that someone would make SUPERGLUEGONE.
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Electric motors are designed to run at peak efficiency at their top speed. This speed is where the motor is doing its job and needs to have optimum torque and energy efficiency. Unfortunately a motor built with only these settings will not start up from dead still. It’s like a 12 speed bicycle that is stuck in 12th gear. The motor needs a special start-up arrangement. This arrangement is usually in the form of a special internal windings that are turned on and off by a centrifugal switch or by shifting the sine wave timing of the AC power using an external capacitor. If either of these start-up arrangements fail the motor will just hum and the shaft will not rotate. Two things to chech are:
1. The capacitor-start motors usually have one or two metal covered “humps” on their outer housing about 1.5″ high by 3″ to 4″ long. The house start-up capacitor(s). If the capacitor will not take a charge, the motor will not start. You will probably need a knowledgeable person to check this.
2. The centrifugal-start type is internal to the motor. It uses springs and open contacts. The springs can break or the contacts can become corroded. Sometimes the contacts can be reached from the outside of the motor and filed. For other repairs the motor must be opened up.
3. On either type of motor, if the startup winding has an open (wire is broken) you chunk the motor. This is not easy to check unless you are familiar with motors.
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Don’t feel stupid. I’m a registered architect with 30 years of experience and I’ve never heard of it either. There are many colloquialisms used in each area of the continent. Some are true local terms. Many are tradenames or mispronunciations of correct terms such as “awlen gravel” for oil-and-gravel or “conreke” for concrete.
In your case, it sounds like a slag-clay-sand mix that can be compacted to impede erosion. Find your information source and ask about an installation you can visit (and not their brother-in-laws). Ask the owner about the price, performance, and satisfaction he experienced. The opinion of a customer is worth a thousand promises from a salesman.
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The problem can also be traced to cheap dimmers. They don’t filter the output to a smooth current but rather chop it into course segments. Course segments of current can induce “filament sing” which can be heard by the human ear. More expensive dimmers provide smoother output that results in quieter operation.
Besides being a nusance, the filament vibration will also reduce the life of the bulbs. Better grade light bulbs are less noisy because they usually have more filament supports and a stiffer filament. Even being tougher, their life is shortened by the vibration.
Filament sing can also show up in the form of static on AM radios.
If other measures fail, buy a higher grade dimmer. They are often harder to find and may have to be ordered from a commercial electrical supply. Blister package dimmers cost $10 – $15 each. Higher end dimmers cost $25 – $35 each.
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You can also make shields from sheet metal. They are quick, easy, and inexpensive. Buy a coil of 25 ga. galvanized sheet metal 12″ wide (or a width equal to the depth of your insulation plus 2″). To make a 12″ diameter shield, cut a piece 38″ long plus 4″ for a lap at the joint (42″ total). Coil the sheet metal into the shape of a pipe, lap the joint 4″ and add sheet metal screws at the lap – Finished, fireproof, and inexpensive.
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A quick fix is to spray the hinge knuckles with WD40. Doesn’t require hinge disassembly, isn’t oily, and dries clear.
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Sounds like you may have moss or lichen.
Moss typically grows on the north face of walls and roofs and has a soft, fuzzy texture. It’s color is often dark to mid green.
Lichen typically grows in thicher, raised patches and can tolerate direct sunshine. The color tends to be a mottled tan/rust/brown but I have seen dark green. Its texture is more course. Lichen is a kind of primitive plant species composed of strands of alga linked with roots and branches of a fungus. Lichen can grow almost anywhere, from moist bark to arctic rocks.
Lichen and moss can be controlled somewhat by running a 4″ strip of galvanized sheet metal along the ridge of your roof. As the weather oxidizes the sheet metal, run-off containing zinc washes the roof and inhibits lichen and moss growth. You can see this effect where plumbing vents penetrate the roof and the downhill surfaces are stained slightly white and are devoid of lichen or moss. I have heard that copper wire works as well, but I have no experience with this method. The sheet metal must be securely fastened or it will blow away in a srong wind. This method is slow acting but is effective for 10 to 15 years.
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Not to mention the fact that you paid an extra $400 to $800 (depending on the model) over the cost of a Kenmore to save $25 a year in utility bills. Let’s see now…..800 divided by 25… comes out to 32 years to recoup the extra cost. Even the old Maytags didn’t last that long (and your new one didn’t either). At best, you would break-even 32 years from now and more likely take a big loss.
I bought a new Maytag gas dryer and the ignitor burned out at the end of the first year. Surprise! – not covered by warranty! Surprise! – repair charges were 30% of the cost of the dryer. Lets see now…..having an electronic ignitor saves energy by not burning $10 worth of gas a year but costs me the price of a new dryer every three years. WOW, thats a good deal because I’m saving energy – even though the repairman used more gasoline making two round trips to my house than the dryer uses in natural gas in five years.
No more energy saving Maytags for me.
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It sounds as though you have what is called “salmon” brick. These are soft, pinkish-orange, brick that were fired at too low a temperature to be used in exposed locations. In the kiln, they were usually located at the interior of the stack and did not receive the heat that the outer brick got. In the 1800’s, masonry walls were load bearing and were very thick (12″ or more). The salmon bricks were used as a filler between the outer wythes (layers). If these brick are ever exposed they crumble to dust. As far as I know there is no repair other than to cover them with a layer of hard fired brick. Salmon brick are no longer made. Todays brick are consistantly hard fired. A local brick mason may have other repair suggestions.
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Be very careful with this stuff. It is VERY toxic and does not biodegrade. Do not use the mixture indoors nor anywhere children or pets can come in contact with the surfaces to which it is applied. My cat died after walking across chlordane treated concrete and then licking her feet. Chlordane is no longer available in the USA and may be illegal to use even if you have an old bottle.
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There are two factors that affect the use of sand in the joint grout. First is the width of the joint, second is the softness of the tile surface.
Narrow joints between 1/16″ and 1/8″ will be clogged by the sand particles making the process of pushing grout to the bottom of the joint difficult. Large joints, 1/8″ and up, need the sand to reduce shrinkage cracks and improve the wearability of the exposed surface. Wider joints are typically used with larger tiles to accomodate greater variations in tile size and for appearance. Notice that 1/8″ was mentioned above in both sizes. That is because either sanded or unsanded grout may be used at that width. Sanded may require a little more work to push full depth into the joint but it will reduce the possibility of shrinkage cracks.
If the tile is marble, granite, or other polished stone, use unsanded grout. The surfaces of these materials are relatively soft and the sand will scratch them. Sanded grout will not normally harm glazed ceramic tile or porcelain tile. The granites are hard but the highly polished finish will show the slightest scratches thus they fall into the unsanded catagory. Unpolished granite can be set with sanded grout. If you set large soft tiles, smaller joints will be required to accomodate the unsanded grout.
In your case, with 16×16 tile (glazed finish assumed) 1/4″ to 1/2″ joints are the norm and sanded grout should be used.
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