Bain

Is that Thing, from the Munsters?

I think it's probably an air discharge sensor. They're typically connected to the circuit-board/control panel.

Our local gas utility uses the 12" rule. Anything less, the furnace gets red-tagged.

There's no verdigris on that roof, so I assume it's supposed to be fairly new. With today's copper prices, those shingles installed would cost somewhere between $2,000.00 and $2,500.00 a square. My money is on the "not copper."

That is exTREMEly helpful. Thanks so much!

This installation passed the city's inspection and was granted a green sticker, but I'm not sure about the flue gases discharging beneath a window. It doesn't look like a flue-pipe connection was mangulated or altered, but rather that the heater is actually designed to be installed as shown. I Googled for installation instructions, but couldn't locate a model that looks like this one. Any clue? And yes, the electrical wire isn't UV rated, the heater is inanely installed above a driveway, and the pressure-relief valve tubing is too short. Oh, did I mention that the installation was blessed by the city inspector . . . ? Click to Enlarge 45.1 KB

"Tis the season to be Merry." "Well that's my name!" "No shit!" Best movie of all time. My 5 year old son found it this morning at home and said "Dad, remember when the woman takes off her bathing suit and gets naked at the pool in his dream?" Ahhh, I love that kid. Wife wasn't quite as pleased as I was...[] I totally agree, and I'm glad someone understood the reference. One of my other favorites is: "Hey. If any of you are looking for any last-minute gift ideas for me, I have one. I'd like Frank Shirley, my boss, right here tonight. I want him brought from his happy holiday slumber over there on Melody Lane with all the other rich people and I want him brought right here, with a big ribbon on his head, and I want to look him straight in the eye and I want to tell him what a cheap, lying, no-good, rotten, fore-fleshing, low-life, snake-licking, dirt-eating, inbred, overstuffed, ignorant, blood-sucking, dog-kissing, brainless, dickless, hopeless, heartless, fat-ass, bug-eyed, stiff-legged, spotty-lipped, worm-headed sack of monkey shit he is. Hallelujah. Holy shit. Where's the Tylenol?"

Or . . . it may just be that the shitter's full. "Oh, the silent majesty of a winter's morn... the clean, cool chill of the holiday air... an asshole in his bathrobe, emptying a chemical toilet into my sewer..."

The person who owns this house told me the people who tore it apart and put it back together said the J-channel was incorrectly installed, and that's what caused the wholesale leakage. I asked for details, but that's all she had.

I get called Mutha a lot but, surprisingly, I haven't received any cards or calls yet.

I suppose it's the same, no matter where one is. Around here, there are realtors who tell others they can choose anyone but me and one other person. The other person I love like a brother. He has a master HVAC license, a master electrical license, and is damn good at his job. Me? I just work my ass off. Yet the realtors try to blacklist us. And what can be done? I could complain to the real estate board, but that would be a waste of time. I could threaten to sue . . . but I won't 'cause my damages would amount to one fee, which is less than a thousand bucks. I've dated a few--okay, more than a few--realtor chicks, and they've told me what gets discussed about HIs at weekly meetings. "Get someone young!" "Give your customer three names. She'll choose so and so because he'll be the least expensive. And so and so LOVES realtors." And on and on. Our jobs. They sort of suck . . . Gary, man, I feel your pain.

Incredible, Joe. Thanks!

The counter position is that someone standing in the shower could get happy feet should the valve trip. I say your set-up trumps flooding a house, though. The PVC will get bumped and nudged, however, so your buyer will have to make certain the thing remains well caulked.

I've NEVER seen the stuff installed correctly. It's always below grade because that's more aesthetically pleasing. Too, the stone is always butted up against doors and windows, and the gaps are filled with mortar that invariably cracks and/or chips. I don't even know how to approach it anymore. And please, no lectures. I've had one client and one builder quiz large, reputable supply-firms and, both times, the positions were that I was wrong. I continue to harp, but I don't think anyone will listen till the class action lawsuit occurs.

Thanks, wart-boy. Hey, maybe later we could get some ice cream and watch the sun set. Where's the wart? And how do you know about it?

Marc, I've had the Inspector II for a decade or so, and my experience is similar to Kurt's. The electricians aren't going to have any equipment to check for voltage drop and, if the bulbs are lighted, they're gonna say everthing's just peachy. I've used my Inspector II maybe twice during the past five years . . . when seven dollar three-prong testers broke. I also spent three-hundred bucks on a refrigerant-leak detector. Same story. The HVAC dude who came behind me had a bottle of bubbles, and said I was an idiot and the condenser was perfectly okay.

Truly, I never would have imagined your mind wandered in spheres such as that . . .

Well, but that was my original question, which apparently I didn't word well. I didn't understand why having the lock-out obviated the need for a disconnect. I didn't realize the NEC allowed "either/or." I had never seen one of those clips till about a year ago when a large-volume builder began using them in their houses.

That makes sense, but I thought the reason disconnects were required for water heaters and condensers was that the electrical panel wasn't always accessible to a repairperson. Disconnects for water heaters aren't required around here if the heater is "in sight" of the electrical panel--when the breaker clip isn't used, clearly. It is a local requirement.

In my area, a disconnect is no longer required on a water-heater circuit if the clip in the photos is installed on the breaker. I don't understand the logic, and I don't actually understand what purpose the clip serves. It looks as if it would prevent the breaker from tripping, rather than adding any additional safety value. I was tempted to push the breaker back and forth to see what happened, but I'm in new construction and don't want to destroy anything. Click to Enlarge 48.48 KB Click to Enlarge 37.69 KB

I answer my own phone and don't typically take time to sway price shoppers, especially this time of year when things are wicked busy. I did have a woman call back recently, though, to ask whether I'd correctly heard the square footage of the house she was buying when another was going to charge $150.00 less than I. I explained that I had understood everything she told me, and she went ahead and booked the gig because of my web-site and Angie's List reviews. So . . . even though I lose most of those skirmishes, there is the occasional victory.

Though it pains me to say anything too terribly nice to you, this is brilliant. I'm going to take advantage of our friendship and, with impunity, steal it from you. I wish everyone would steal it. We'd all benefit from it. I got a fence-sitter right now; me, or the cheaper guy. I'll see if my email to her tips her in my favor. All I said was what Jim said. . . I'm wondering, though, if one might take offense if they do indeed shop at the Dollar Store. Bain, you've now stolen from at least two brilliant folk. Hope you're proud of yourself. I have no shame. I'm a product of my environment and upbringing, and pretty much take responsibility for nothing.

Though it pains me to say anything too terribly nice to you, this is brilliant. I'm going to take advantage of our friendship and, with impunity, steal it from you.

I'll bet he was a Lego dude as a kid.

Last time I checked, a short-term radon measurement test, performed in accordance with EPA protocols, is the requirement for postmitigation clearance. Where can I find something that states that a short term test "won't really tell you whether the mitigation system is operating correctly"? You're right, of course, technically. But there's a presumption in the short-term, post-mitigation clearance that a system was correctly configured and installed. Since Michelle--and some who have posted here--have questions about whether her system is installed correctly, a two-day test could easily produce a false negative for radon.