Maintenance & Repairs - February 2007

My outside water hydrant broke. Upon leaving the pressure tank, the water flows through a 3/4" pipe to the hydrant where it tees off. One side of the tee goes to the hydrant, the other continues on to supply my house with water. When I went to remove the hydrant, the small piece of pipe that screws into the tee broke, leaving the rest of it locked up in the threads of the tee. I'm getting ready to cut the pipe off right before the tee. Someone brought a pipe threader by for me to use and told me that he was instructed to remind me to keep oiling the pipe while i rethreaded it. I don't have any cutting oil. Any ideas on a good substitute?

2007-02-22 16:53:53 · 9 answers · asked by krankit8 1

The first shower in the morning is barely lukewarm. Recovery is fine after the first usage in the morning with water reaching the desired temperature quickly. Pilot and burner appears normal. Temperature valve is set fairly high and water registers 128 degrees. Water heater is in a heated garage. Problem has been getting worse over last few months. I have replaced the dip tube and drained much of the water out which was surprisingly clean. Water heater is 7 years old. Clerk at Home Depot suggested replacing the thermocoupler, but the standing pilot seems to run just fine so I question that idea. Any ideas will be appreciated.

2007-02-22 16:49:12 · 6 answers · asked by JEichho 1

I have a shower and the plumbing runs up from the floor. On the wall the containing the plumbing, on the opposite side, is an electrical switch and outlet. What is the minimum safe distance between the electrical lines and the plumbing so that a plumbing leak doesn't result in someone being killed or hurt?

2007-02-22 16:18:06 · 5 answers · asked by Greg H 3

We had our water tested and it is very hard, does that mean more or less soap in the washer? I'm not really sure what difference hard and soft water makes.

2007-02-22 15:58:09 · 12 answers · asked by Fallon V 4

I was wondering how does a brick house compare to other houses in terms of keeping heat inside the house in the winter

2007-02-22 15:49:59 · 5 answers · asked by buckbucknumber2000 1

I'm renting a house from a slum-lord who won't have anything repaired. There are a couple of breaks in the water supply line due to tree root growth. Unfortunately, whoever installed the original plumbing used two different sizes and types of PVC. They used black flexhose-type PVC and standard white PVC. The two sections were jury-rigged together and I would rather do a better job than that. The sections are the same size internally, but different sizes externally, so regular couplings won't work. Any information you can give me will be appreciated.

I've dug the whole thing up for over forty feet, so the hard part is done already. All I need now is information, which I can't find on any websites.

2007-02-22 15:26:34 · 6 answers · asked by Candidus 6

What kind of battery does this unit take? I can't figure out how to get the cover off.

Thanks!

2007-02-22 15:07:54 · 4 answers · asked by Emily Dew 7

I'm trying to repair a diverter valve in my shower. Is there a way to do this without having to remove the shower wall? And if I do have to remove the shower wall, what's the easiest way to do this?

2007-02-22 14:40:45 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous

A small glass jar went into our kitchen garbage disposal. As soon as I turned it on I heard an odd noise and so I stopped it and looked into the sink using gloves. I found broken pieces of the glass. I took a lot of them out- as many as I could. But there are a few still remaining and I'm guessing a few went into the pipe. Should I be worried? I looked and there did not seem to be an easy way to access the cavity where the glass shreds are - unless I call a plumber. Tight on money. Will call plumber if needed, but dont want to uneccessarily shell out dough. I'm guessing the pipes are copper -- so nothing should get cut. I'm in a 12 year old house.

2007-02-22 14:14:28 · 13 answers · asked by jenhangla 1

I used a razor but it killed the blade in about two seconds. Is there a special saw for this stuff that won't make a huge mess?

2007-02-22 14:07:14 · 13 answers · asked by Jim C 5

Should I insulate the ceiling which is the house roof?

2007-02-22 14:02:37 · 9 answers · asked by Mr. Skippy 1

I am looking to buy an old farmhouse in PA, I cannot find the age by public records, it has a fieldstone foundation, and the round roof rafters. What age do you think this house is?

2007-02-22 13:17:01 · 4 answers · asked by ryan n 1

I want to do some touch painting and my landlord has no idea what was used.

2007-02-22 13:01:51 · 7 answers · asked by James L 1

My roof hangs over the house about 3 feet and there is a wire that runs underneath the roof. The wire is connected directly from the electric meter, which is located inside our house, to the utility pole that right next to my home. Everyday, several pigeons would hang around on the wire and make a huge and digusting mess right at my door steps. We had tried spraying water, throwing pebbles, and even shooting plastic BB pellets, but non of them worked. They would taunt us by coming back in few hours. The war games with the pigeons have been going on for more than a year. We checked the whole house and there are no nesting. Does anyone know of a safe and inexpensive solution to this problem?

2007-02-22 12:44:25 · 11 answers · asked by Kalyfornia 2

i'm painting my bedroom and i want 2 colors how long i have to wait for take off the blue tape and put the other color

2007-02-22 12:38:36 · 10 answers · asked by puma 1

I want to sweep concrete floors and need something to pick up the dust.

2007-02-22 12:37:02 · 5 answers · asked by bill h 1

I have a new 16X80 home and want to skirt it with something other than the cheap flimsy vinyl that comes with the home. It is on a pier foundation.
ANYBODY out there have their mobil home skirted in any UNIQUE way. I have an idea or two to make it look better and make it tighter, but want your input...maybe, I'm missing some great idea you have actually used. THANKS!

2007-02-22 12:20:28 · 10 answers · asked by Dr. J 3

I gonna go in a hunted house this year but i m scared... how do i survive it??

2007-02-22 11:44:58 · 10 answers · asked by riu bambu 2

I have some ceiling light fixtures that I replace the buld every month, I don't want to switch to eco-friendly bulbs because they are more expensive than a regular bulbs.

2007-02-22 11:31:06 · 10 answers · asked by grip2rip 1

I have old vertical wood siding and it's about 26 years old. It's seen it's better days and it needs to be replaced...Can I put new vertical wood siding over the top of the old stuff, or do I need to take of the old?

2007-02-22 11:25:00 · 6 answers · asked by CJ 2

The house is thirty years old...and so are three of the outlets....three out of four are in the same room right next to each other (all are same circuit). The breaker was never tripped...just to be sure I went back and flipped it off, then on...

What type of problem am I likely looking at? Is replacing the outlets a good bet?

2007-02-22 11:22:39 · 7 answers · asked by badmanpoker 1

I live in a very old house and cold house.My boyfriend has lived here since age 15.There are several rooms so cold in the winter you could hang meat in and it would not spoil.Does anyone have any ideas that wouldn't cost an arm and leg?Thanks

2007-02-22 11:20:57 · 14 answers · asked by honeypot0214 4

Yes, stupid things happen to me all the time. Today, for instance, my garage door opener wouldn't work. I checked the fuse box and sure enough, it was tripped. I unplugged everything (except the garage door opener, of course!) and the switch still remains tripped. If I try to switch it, it trips immidiately.

To make things worse, the chord that I pull to unhook the garage from the opener (so I can open it manually) is gone! So, is my car locked in my garage forever? What should I do?

2007-02-22 11:08:25 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous

During a hard freeze, we left water running in the house, and outside, to keep th pipes from freezing. Now our water looks dirty. This is well water.How can we clear our water up.

2007-02-22 10:58:29 · 4 answers · asked by bjsuno 4

I apparently need a new circuit board in my boiler. Boiler is 12 years old. I have been quoted £420 plus VAT to supply and fit the part so guts of £500. To all Corgi engineers in the UK - is this reasonable??

2007-02-22 10:56:46 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous

what is asteam boiler furnace

2007-02-22 10:32:49 · 4 answers · asked by whitney a 1

2007-02-22 10:32:12 · 3 answers · asked by sandy b 1

2007-02-22 10:29:04 · 3 answers · asked by theoubobcat 1

I had it for 5 year the same time I got the washer machine it work find. it just stop working it won't turn on at all, don't make know nosie.

2007-02-22 10:25:40 · 3 answers · asked by SHEMIKA O 2

Ok, so does anyone have any ideas as to the best way to get rid of...and then prevent them from roaming in my house. My house is clean..probably not clean enough though. My wife and I were sitting around the couch and she said she saw a shadow move under the couch and seemed really creeped out. I said ok, lifted the couch and saw a little brown mouse with a nice pile of nuts that we leave out on the coffee table in a dish. After a long battle of trying to get him in a box and taking apart the living room..he ran downstairs and into the basement. I placed some traps around down there and when i get home tonight..will check them. Anyways...how can I prevent them from coming back??? All help is appreciated! And how do they even get into the house! I did check for holes or anything that he might be able to creep through..and didn't see anything.

2007-02-22 10:21:11 · 8 answers · asked by cbrkev98 1