Tom Raymond

That'll be damned inconvenient for the left handed chef[:-bigeyes NKBA guidelines call for 18" landing space on either side of cooking surfaces and 24" clearance to cabinets and/or hoods above. The 6" clearance to combustables is folklore, how do you get 6" between a cooktop and a backsplash on a postform laminate countertop? Tom

Has ice and water shield withstood the test of time in your areas that have ice damming issues? I just installed it on a roof I am working on, and am just curious. Yes, it holds up just fine in WNY. It has been the norm on new construction for at least the last 20 years. As for the ice dam issue, ventilation may help, it may not. I have seen complicated roofs that won't vent well at all, and some very large roofs that are ice machines even with full soffit and ridge vent. Ventilation has to be designed for the roof, there is no one size fits all solution. If I were going to contract a roofer in WNY it would be Neth and Sons. They are very up to date on residential and comercial roofing products and have done urethane part conditioned retrofits in the area (insulating the roof deck instead of venting). They will not be the cheapest, but a cheap roof is a bad idea. Tom

Incorporating in NY will run about a Grand, not to mention the tax implications. I can buy a whole lot of GL for a Grand. BTW, don't advertise how much insurance you have, no sense letting the slime know in advance what they might settle for. If you really want to reduce your exposure, don't take an attorney as a client.[] Tom

Hey, wheres the pictures of the vintage equipment? Tom They don't make 'em like they used too!

Mike, While I agree that the stairs as is are not a safety concern, the fact that the builder left out such a simple detail would have me looking at what else he cut corners on. Tom Pretty cheap to leave out a couple of 1x10's[:-thumbd]

John, did a client tell you this? If so they are most likely refering to the sash. After more than a decade in the fenestration biz I've heard more bizzare descriptions of a sash than you can imagine. Don't even get me started on the difference between mullions and muntins[] Scott, the next time you run into a seal failure in what you suspect to be a high performance glass check it out with your IR thermometer, the difference in performance is probably greater than you think. Tom

Man, that is one ooogly system[:-bigeyes I have nasty clay soil and a simple sand filter system that works great. If I hadn't have put it in I would have no idea where it is. Tom Sometimes simpler is better.

John, Where you refering to the deck or the thread?[:-slaphap Tom Sorry, I couldn't resist

Here you go, VS606 $492.00 FS606 $273.00 EDL606 $72.00 Not having to rip up your new roof...Priceless! Tom BTW, don't put off that new roof any longer than you have to, material prices have gone up 15% three times this year and at least two more increases are coming.

Is there a better view of this panel? You said it was fuses but the panel itself looks as new as the wiring. If it isn't a newish panel then where are all the old wires? Tom

How old was the house? My guess is 20-25 years if the fan was wired that way, any older and there would be only one switch and the fan and light controls would be the pull chains. Most fans these days come with remotes, even the cheap ones, so you could find one without any switches. Just don't loose the remote[] Tell your client that the switch controls are correct, that the remote is only a convenience, and they will be glad to have the switch controls after the dog eats the remote[] Tom

The short answer: NO! Now that thats clear, are you sure you have your terminology straight? Shakes are split and are typically either stained or left to weather. Painted finishes are common for shingles, which are sawn (and sometimes machined) and can also be stained or left to weather. Either way they function esentially the same way; the overlaps keep the weather out and the gaps allow for expansion. If the caulk is there to keep the weather out then whatever they are, they're shot. The easiest way to apply a finish is to spray it. If it must be brushed on, the proper technique is to paint the gaps first, then the bottom or butt edge, then the face. Tom Hope that helps

With all those grooves going in all those directions, it's no wonder there's a shingle upside-down. Tom I'm dizzy just looking at it[]

They might as well hang a Mighty Mouse swiss cheese burner on that thing, the heat exchanger was optimized for oil.[:-crazy] Tom

Would the same hold true if one replaced the entire furnace and not just the burner? Couldn't the duct size be compensated for when the plenum is rebuilt? Or by increasing the fan size? Tom Boy, am I glad I have radiant heat[:-party]

I still sometimes see hardwired bedroom smokies still powered after the AFCI is tripped. Wait a minute, aren't hardwired smokes supposed to be on a dedicated circuit and interconnected, so that if one goes off they all go off? If they are on the bedroom arc fault they would all fail to go off in the case of an electrical fire. Around here hard wired smokes are only required in multi family dwellings of 3 or more units and must be on the common area service. That way if only one unit is occupied all the smokes are still live. Tom

Brandon In my experience 2 cm is for comodity tops, like prefab vanity tops or blanks for the small fab shops, but kitchen tops are almost always 3 cm and premium tops are even thicker. No backer is ever used, but additional supports are some times used on larger boxes. I just did a solid surface top (polyester) 1/2" thick material that required at least 2" wide supports every 18" but was not recommended for aplication over a solid substrate. Tom

Are you sure it is siding? Back in the 60's there was an asbestos roof tile that was very similar in appearance to the siding. I actually just saw an ad for it in a 1966 Popular Science mag at an antique shop, if I had bought the book I would post it for you. I have no idea what the correct details would be though. As for all the recycling that was going on, that can either be really cool or a real nightmare. I have seen some really nice reuse of older materials, I've also seen stuff that shouldn't have been used the first time around let alone recycled. Tom

Your probably right Kurt, but the good old US of A can't afford to build something like the Palm Emerates Island. In fact we aren't even invited to participate, Canadian design firms and European and Scandanavian contractors have a firm grip on Dubai. Perhaps it's because we spend all of our time and energy on strip malls. Tom

John may be on to something. If he handed the ball to the RE agent after his demo, the silence as they pondered the mystical powers of the dimpled orb would offer him a chance to explain his findings to his client.[] Tom

Those are pretty ugly details. Unfortunately not too many people, installers incuded, realize that even properly installed vinyl allows up to 20% of the water that hits it to go through it. Underlayment is key to keeping the building dry. With the level of detail on those buildings that siding should take in the range of 10-12 man hours per square to install and detail properly. I'll bet that there aren't that many hours into the siding you have pictured. Tom

That was kinda my point, the AHJ either did his job and read the manual (pretty funny, huh?) or passed it on looks alone. Either way I'm sure he had no idea how it was supposed to be wired. I don't think most of the people who have responded do either. I see these systems popping up all over around here, and when I finally run into one on an inspection I will have to punt, or break down and read the manual so I know what the hell I'm looking at. We HI's call ourselves professionals, If we were we would read the flippin' manual and learn something. Tom Aw, forget the manual, it's only manufacturers opinion anyway[]

I think this is a case when the installation manual should be required to determine if this is a correct installation or not. This is a transfer switch after all, not the typical sub panel we are accustomed to. I'll bet the AHJ that blessed it had to read the manual. Speedy, why are you so convinced that the automatic switch is wrong when the manual switch is obviously not? A switch is a switch, doesn't matter who trips it. Bottom line is this is a set up we will be seeing more and more, we should take the time to educate ourselves and stop making WAG's. Tom If all else fails, read the directions!

Whoa! I said it was wrong, but is it really any worse than having the fiberglass exposed? Last I knew that was also wrong, and in an environment with all those unwelcome guests making homes in it, larger more dangerous pests will have it all ripped out looking for snacks and for their own nests. Which is worse, the wrong installation as it is or the correct installation that is still wrong. Personally, I think it's the science on crawls that's wrong, just as I feel about attics, they should be considered part of the envelope and insulated and conditioned as such. I have seen this concept in action in Nevada, Florida, and Western NY (all very different environs) in high end construction and I honestly think it will trickle down to more modest buildings. I have also seen it showing up in retro-fits, so I am not alone in my thinking. Tom