The Home Improvement Thread

[Wormius]

I thought it was a pretty good description. You are not going to get all "hash brown-sized" pedantic on the visual appearance of drain hair, are you??

[You Need a Thneed]

Anyone used Sharkbite fittings for waterlines? Recommendations?

I'm redoing a bit of plumbing in my downstairs bathroom and laundry area. I'm quite sure that everything in the house is soldered copper. I've never soldered before, but I'm not against learning either.

[surferguy]

They will work - that said dont bury them in a wall. take the ten minutes to learn how to solder. A couple of youtubes will sort you out. Just make sure you put enough heat on it.

[V]

I've never soldered, because I was always worried I'd screw it up and then I'd have to pay a fortune to get a plumber in to turn the water on. I use sharkbite now. It's expensive, but so, so easy to do. Plumbers will laugh at you, though.

[EVERLAST]

Shark bites are for people just asking for trouble. ...haven't met a plumber yet that hasn't seen a catastrophic failure with the use of these.

[Wormius]

For soldering; just practice. It's not overly expensive to get some copper pipe and practice beforehand.

[You Need a Thneed]

My other question is, what about solder on a transition to PEX, and then use PEX the rest of the way?

[Fuzz]

I used a few of them in my bathroom reno as their ability to rotate freely made the job much easier. I do have an access panel to all of them though. Did it 3 years ago, no problems yet.

[surferguy]

Originally Posted by You Need a Thneed

My other question is, what about solder on a transition to PEX, and then use PEX the rest of the way?

This is my preferred method.

[Wormius]

PEX isn't bad. I had to convert some old PolyB stuff to PEX and it's pretty easy to work with. The huge crimper is unwieldy though, IMO. You can rent the tool at Home Depot though. Again, recommend some practice and reading up on where to put the crimp rings.

[tvp2003]

Noob question -- we moved recently and our new place has an older gas fireplace in the basement:



What is the purpose of the knob on the right?

[surferguy]

^^^paging EVERLAST!

[PaperBagger'14]

I haven't worked on older fireplaces, but newer ones occasionally have fan blowers in them. The 2 knobs, my guess, would be a gas valve and a fan switch.

Edit: a quick check online says it could also be one of 2 things, fresh air intake control or flue control. The further open the flue, the more exhaust that gets removed.

[red sky]

Any one have any tips on finishing joints on board and batten wall. I'm using MDF and using dry wall compound on nail holes and the joints however I can't get it looking perfect. I'll post some pictures shortly.



Before finishing nail holes, joints and caulking



The last one is before sanding.

[surferguy]

You could try wood filler. Drywall compound will shrink into the cracks requiring potentially a couple of fills.

[red sky]

Originally Posted by surferguy

You could try wood filler. Drywall compound will shrink into the cracks requiring potentially a couple of fills.

Does it smooth well?

[PaperBagger'14]

I'm not a Carpenter but maybe try DAP, I've seen that used as filler before on baseboards and used it in my own house with good results.

[red sky]

Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14

I'm not a Carpenter but maybe try DAP, I've seen that used as filler before on baseboards and used it in my own house with good results.

Thanks. I'm using DAP to caulk the seams and that could be an option.

[surferguy]

Originally Posted by red sky

Does it smooth well?

Yes it does. Dap while decent to fill baseboard, It can be a hassle to get a nice not gummed finish. I will also use a dap filler sometimes that is pink and turns white once dry.

[topfiverecords]

Could try Lepage Plastic Wood. Can get it at Lowes and Canadian Tire. Will sand nice and smooth. About $13 for a can
http://www.lepage.ca/en/lepage-produ...od-filler.html