The Home Improvement Thread

[Wormius]

If it is a broken spring, wouldn’t any threat be removed?

[Sr. Mints]

It was indeed a broken spring. I have no idea about this stuff, and I watched the guy change it out without hovering too much. He brought a long metal tube which I guess houses the spring (for safety, or just because that's how they do it? I didn't get the chance to ask). He swapped it in for the old one quite quickly - about 30 minutes all in.

I was expecting to see actual visible springs and had a brief flashback of snapping a bungee cord into my face as a kid.

[SportsJunky]

Originally Posted by photon

Anyone have any experience getting someone to design a room? I want to redo my home office, maybe even have some custom built in cabinets/shelves or even desk done, but I'm not good with starting with a clean slate and making good use of a space.

I suppose anyone that would be building the stuff could design something, but maybe getting the design first would let me get different quotes on building it.. or if it's simple enough I could even do it myself.

Have you looked into AI virtual renovation for ideas? I saw this the other day. Haven't tried it yet but it seems easy enough to use.
https://www.reimaginehome.ai

[photon]

Hm interesting, maybe I'll try and see what it comes up with.

[psyang]

Anyone have a recommendation for an appliance repair company? Our oven stopped working. We had a bad experience with another company a few years back, and doing my usual google search/read reviews has only made me think every appliance repair company is a scan.

[photon]

I've always had good success with A Appliance Doctor (https://www.appliancedoctorrepair.com/). Once he made a replacement electronic part for me for a few dollars instead of ordering the expensive part for the old fridge.

[Slava]

It might depend on the brand though? Some service people work on specific brands and not on others.

[calgarywinning]

Originally Posted by Wormius

My kitchen hood fan vent is destroyed by probably hail/birds/UV exposure. Anyway, my problem is that to reach it I need a ladder, which is fine, but the ground is sloping so much that the ladder doesn't go anywhere near vertical if I try to plant both legs on the ground. Is putting a shim under one of the legs the acceptable means of solving this or is there a more conventional solution?

I've seen some people use compressors and or electric high powered blowers for dryer machines (same type of vent) from the inside to push air through and clean or at least see the vents are opening. Probably some grease build up etc in the vent line.

Edit: More so dryer vents, but they in theory function the same.

[psyang]

Originally Posted by Slava

It might depend on the brand though? Some service people work on specific brands and not on others.

Yeah, true. The oven is old (20+ years) so I really just want to know if it's an easy fix (ie. replace an element or fuse or something) or if it's time to replace the oven. I imagine larger fixes like replacing the control board may not be possible as parts may be scarce.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by psyang

Yeah, true. The oven is old (20+ years) so I really just want to know if it's an easy fix (ie. replace an element or fuse or something) or if it's time to replace the oven. I imagine larger fixes like replacing the control board may not be possible as parts may be scarce.

What's it doing(or not doing), and is it gas or electric?

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by psyang

Yeah, true. The oven is old (20+ years) so I really just want to know if it's an easy fix (ie. replace an element or fuse or something) or if it's time to replace the oven. I imagine larger fixes like replacing the control board may not be possible as parts may be scarce.

Our oven/stove is closing in on 20 years and I'd be giddy if it died to have an excuse to upgrade to induction. Every time I'm cleaning the kitchen and have to scrub the carbon buildup on the stove glass I'm tempted to sabotage the thing myself

[psyang]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

What's it doing(or not doing), and is it gas or electric?

Elements don't heat up at all, but front panel and fan (for convection) work fine. I can hear the relays click when I turn on the oven. Both broil and oven elements stopped working at the same time. I'm guessing it's not pulling the 240V for the element.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by psyang

Elements don't heat up at all, but front panel and fan (for convection) work fine. I can hear the relays click when I turn on the oven. Both broil and oven elements stopped working at the same time. I'm guessing it's not pulling the 240V for the element.

Hrmm, ya with both elements out I wonder if it's just a fuse. If it were me I'd google the model to see if it is a common problem and easy fix.

[Shazam]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

Our oven/stove is closing in on 20 years and I'd be giddy if it died to have an excuse to upgrade to induction. Every time I'm cleaning the kitchen and have to scrub the carbon buildup on the stove glass I'm tempted to sabotage the thing myself

If you go induction check that you have enough wattage to the receptacle.

[MoneyGuy]

Does it cause any damage if winter humidity gets really low in a house? We’ll be away for a few weeks and won’t be running the portable humidifiers we use.

[sa226]

If you have hardwood flooring that's probably the biggest concern.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

Does it cause any damage if winter humidity gets really low in a house? We’ll be away for a few weeks and won’t be running the portable humidifiers we use.

It'll be fine.

How have you made it this far lol?

[no_joke]

My bathroom exhaust fan tripped the GFCI, located at a receptacle in the same bathroom, after a long, hot shower. I can reset the GFCI and use lights and other loads on the circuit, but running the exhaust fan will trip the GFCI- the fan will only run for about a second. I've tried this a few times now. It has been several hours after the initial trip so the room humidity should have dissipated as well. I've removed the fan cover and had a quick look but there wasn't an "obvious" issue e.g., dust, moisture.

I might be able to recall one other time several years ago when this GFCI tripped that might have been due to high draw, but that just required a simple reset. I'll Google some more and troubleshoot but if anyone has any pointers, I'm all ears!

[Locke]

Originally Posted by no_joke

My bathroom exhaust fan tripped the GFCI, located at a receptacle in the same bathroom, after a long, hot shower. I can reset the GFCI and use lights and other loads on the circuit, but running the exhaust fan will trip the GFCI- the fan will only run for about a second. I've tried this a few times now. It has been several hours after the initial trip so the room humidity should have dissipated as well. I've removed the fan cover and had a quick look but there wasn't an "obvious" issue e.g., dust, moisture.

I might be able to recall one other time several years ago when this GFCI tripped that might have been due to high draw, but that just required a simple reset. I'll Google some more and troubleshoot but if anyone has any pointers, I'm all ears!

Are you kidding?

[no_joke]

Deadly serious.