The Home Improvement Thread

[Fuzz]

Thanks man, if I think of anything else or run into a problem tomorrow I'll let you know.

[BloodFetish]

Hi all.

One thing I've struggled with in the past is patching holes in a wall and having them invisible after painting. When the light plays across the wall I can always spot the patches because they don't have the same pebbling as unpatched areas.

I've tried using a paint brush and stippling the patched areas with primer. It helps a bit but the patches are still noticeable. I've used both drywall compound and Dap for patching and it doesn't seem to make any difference. Does anyone have any pro tips for me?

[You Need a Thneed]

Thought I'd post a picture of my next undertaking here:



This was a free standing gas fireplace, which I had disconnected when we moved in, as this level is a playroom for our kids. The orange brick hearth took up too much area in the room, so as of yesterday, I have demolished the mixture of veneer brick and full brick that the previous owner had installed.

My plan is to frame a new wall, and abandon the little setback in the wall. Some point in the future, I might put an electric fireplace into the wall, but not now.

Any suggestions for sealing up that area properly?

Somehow my kids didn't complain about loud hammering directly below their bedrooms for an hour or two after their bedtime that last couple nights. Also, my arm is still sore - not used to swinging a 4 lb sledge repeatedly. My black bin will be extra heavy for the next couple of weeks. The pile of bricks you see in the picture is maybe about a third of the total amount that was removed.

[Simon96Taco]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

LOL

Ya, will be shutting off the breakers before starting and powering down the panel when I put new breakers in. Not my first rodeo!

Been zerted a couple times, no fun!

Question to the electricians about the breakers - is it OK to flip the breaker to work on a circuit (e.g. changing an outlet or switch), or am I supposed to be powering the whole/main panel down?

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by Simon96Taco

Question to the electricians about the breakers - is it OK to flip the breaker to work on a circuit (e.g. changing an outlet or switch), or am I supposed to be powering the whole/main panel down?

That's exactly what the breakers are for. Definately OK.

I reccommend having a non contact tester to confirm that there is no power in the boxes you are working in. They cost $20-$30.

[Fuzz]

I'd totally build a hidden compartment in that area. For, err, stuff.

[You Need a Thneed]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

I'd totally build a hidden compartment in that area. For, err, stuff.

It's not "hidden" if I tell all of you about it

[surferguy]

Originally Posted by BloodFetish

Hi all.

One thing I've struggled with in the past is patching holes in a wall and having them invisible after painting. When the light plays across the wall I can always spot the patches because they don't have the same pebbling as unpatched areas.

I've tried using a paint brush and stippling the patched areas with primer. It helps a bit but the patches are still noticeable. I've used both drywall compound and Dap for patching and it doesn't seem to make any difference. Does anyone have any pro tips for me?

A bit confused here - what do you mean by pebbling? Did you use a brush to paint just the area of the patch? Likely what has happened is the "pebbling" is the minor texture that the roller places on the wall, so you see the patch because the texture of the brushed area is different than the roller would give. My rule of thumb for patches is to repaint the entire wall.

Might seem excessive to some - but I do a lot of this for people and they don't always have the paint left over so I am left with matching colors and it is not always exact. If it is off a slight shade - you will never notice (when compared to adjacent wall) if you paint the entire wall.

[Fuzz]

On my walls most of the "pebbling" is the result of the guy before me using really low quality paint and a crappy roller. So even when I patch and repaint the whole wall it is noticeable. I think the solution would be to sand it all smooth, then prime and paint but I'm not that picky.

[BloodFetish]

^^ yeah, that's exactly what I mean by pebbling, the textured surface left on the wall from previous paint jobs.

Given what I've seen of previous work in our unit it wouldn't surprise me if they cut some costs on paint and rollers. I was hoping there are some tricks pro painters use to hide the patches better than I've been able to do.

I've repainted the entire wall as we're changing colours from what was there when we bought the place.

[Fuzz]

So, all the diagrams I've found online for 2 lights and a switch have the power coming in at the switch, but mine enters much closer to the first light. I assume I can just run it like this. The white would obviously follow the black, I just did it like this to show it is continuous from the switch, and the black goes in and out of each light. Is this correct?

[PaperBagger'14]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

So, all the diagrams I've found online for 2 lights and a switch have the power coming in at the switch, but mine enters much closer to the first light. I assume I can just run it like this. The white would obviously follow the black, I just did it like this to show it is continuous from the switch, and the black goes in and out of each light. Is this correct?

You should re do it. The proper way is to always bring your hot (wire directly from the panel) to the switch first then the lights, otherwise you have to run your hot through the lights and to the switch and back again so that the switch leg controls the lights. It's a waste to do it that way.

[Fuzz]

Well, the reason I was thinking this way is if I bring the hot to the switch first, then through the lights I have to run a lot more wire. Which means drilling through twice as many joists....But if that is the proper way to do it, I will.

There might be another circuit I can grab a hot from near the switch. I'll see what is on it. For now though, I've starting taking apart the kitchen and wow, whoever did this was a moron. Lots of shoddy work to clean up.

[MG153]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Well, the reason I was thinking this way is if I bring the hot to the switch first, then through the lights I have to run a lot more wire. Which means drilling through twice as many joists....But if that is the proper way to do it, I will.

There might be another circuit I can grab a hot from near the switch. I'll see what is on it. For now though, I've starting taking apart the kitchen and wow, whoever did this was a moron. Lots of shoddy work to clean up.

It can be done the way you said but I would recommend a 3 wire between the 2 lights that way you can carry power through to the switch and back on the switch leg. As well the neutral to both lights. If none is handy 2 2 wires could work and cap off one of the whites on both ends. (3 wire is recommended ) I agree power to the switch is ideally the best way but if it's a huge pain in the ass, the way I said still works and nothing wrong with it.

I hear you. Lots of shoddy stuff in older houses. Just finished rewiring the girlfriends parents house. Built in late 70s mishmosh of aluminum and copper throughout. EXtra redundant wires all over the basement no wire connectors on boxes. No grounds on boxes etc took 4 days to do what should have taken 2

[Fuzz]

Ugh...what a mess...I ended up having to take a few backsplash tiles out(I have spares) because the moran filled the cavity with foam and I couldn't pull out the old wires without making a 1 ft size hole. As expected their were wires all over the place. So no ,i didn't get close to completing the job.

Instead of the 20 amp on the right of the sink, I just ran a 15A GFCI as we rarely use that plug. The other reason was it is a 2 gang box and has the lights on it, but there wouldn't have been room for a 15A and a 20A line into the box. So I just ran a new 15A and hooked the lights to the load line of the GFCI plug.

I also ran a new line for the dishwasher and another for the garbage disposal. Everything except the garbage disposal is hooked up on that side.

The other side is the foam bomb one, so I'm replacing the 2 gang with a 3, running 2 20A GCFI's as it is heavily used and a switch for the light on that side. That light will be powered by a 15 A shared with a few outlets in the living room.

That leaves me with still needing to run a 20A to a plug on another wall that is heavily used, then I can work on the basement lights and get the furnace on it's own breaker. And fix the tiles...Phew, so much for a friday project! This is gonna be a 2 weekender!

[timun]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

So, all the diagrams I've found online for 2 lights and a switch have the power coming in at the switch, but mine enters much closer to the first light. I assume I can just run it like this. The white would obviously follow the black, I just did it like this to show it is continuous from the switch, and the black goes in and out of each light. Is this correct?

[Fuzz]

Thanks, I'll think about that one... probably cost me more money to buy a short piece of 14/3 than it would to run a 14/2 all the way to the switch as I have a big spool now!

[TheGrimm]

Anyone here have any experience finishing barn wood furniture? I am working on a table from some reclaimed wood off the family farm, most of these pieces are from the turn of the last century so I want to retain as much character as possible.

I would like a matte finish if possible and would like to have a faded or grey patina if possible. I've read about vinegar and steel wool techniques etc, but wanted to see if others have attempted a project like this before and had any input before I dive in?

It also would need to be well sealed as I have a family with young children, and the idea of grape juice stains makes me cry inside a bit.

Here is a picture (it's been sanded down a bit further since but is fairly similar in appearance still):

[Fuzz]

Ugh, tell me I didn't screw up..... So I went to home depot and bought 20A wire, the only stuff they had had a red sheath or yellow sheath, which I assumed was fine because the 20A breaker is also red. Anyway, I wired it up, but only really noticed after running all the cable that the wire inside was Red, Black and Ground. So is it fine to use a red wire on a 20A as a neutral? I've been searching but can't find much info. Obviously it doesn't technically matter, but I don't want this to be an issue down the road. I haven't sealed the wall up yet, but this would be a couple hours of effort lost....

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Ugh, tell me I didn't screw up..... So I went to home depot and bought 20A wire, the only stuff they had had a red sheath or yellow sheath, which I assumed was fine because the 20A breaker is also red. Anyway, I wired it up, but only really noticed after running all the cable that the wire inside was Red, Black and Ground. So is it fine to use a red wire on a 20A as a neutral? I've been searching but can't find much info. Obviously it doesn't technically matter, but I don't want this to be an issue down the road. I haven't sealed the wall up yet, but this would be a couple hours of effort lost....

15A should be at least 14 gauge (14/2) (confirm with your package), which is standard for 15amp circuits.

Colors mean nothing in application, just get white electrical tape and tape up the red wire so people in the future know its the neutral. This is common practice when you end up with hot white wires, you'd tag it with black/red.