Brian G

Originally posted by kurt I hate interior drain roofing systems. Amen. Plain ole sloped-to-drain is a principle that cannot fail easily, since gravity never takes a second off. Love those big overhangs. Prarie, one of my favorites. Brian G. Prarie Is Uptown [:-tophat]

Oy! John my friend, please downsize your photos to 100kb or less. Those are way more than the screen can hold. Brian G. On Low-Grade DSL [:-indiffe

I always thought I would get a Sure Test as things went along, but since so many of the HI's I listen to have posted that they don't use them anymore I've pretty much abandoned the idea. I've seen this on every board and among at least 20 or so different guys who've been down that road. They aren't trustworthy. The voltage drop readings are a huge can of worms that wears most people down after a while. Even Douglas got upset with something about the latest model and said he wanted his money back (they ain't cheap either). Would anyone care to give me an arguement as to why I (or any HI) should spend the money for a Sure Test? Brian G. Fire Away [:-blindfo

Originally posted by mgbinspect If getting my balls busted yields revelation, I'm all for it. As I said, I'm not a big theory fan, I like answers. That's an approach I can appreciate. Any reasonable person has to willing to entertain and consider new or differing information without taking it personally. Good show Mike. But, if the entire chimney is leaning away from the house, yes that can be pretty easily fixed. We have a lot of shrink/swell soil around here and what they normally do is sink a couple of heliptical piers down into the ground until they hit a desired resistance and then jack up the chimney and clamp support angles under the chimney footing and to the piers. For whatever reason I see these here and there in my area; still straight as an arrow, with the whole thing slowly tilting away from the house. Often the gap has been caulked at least once, and has re-opened (of course). Also, when it's shrink/swell soil in subside state, I've actually instructed people to leave the hose trickling all night at the base of the chimney and they woke up to a chimney that was straight up against the house again in the morning. (Obviously a temporarly fix. Ya gotta stabilize that one.) We do have some specific areas of expansive soils around, so I'll keep that in mind too. Brian G. Tilt Belongs on Pinball Machines [:-mohawk]

Originally posted by kurt And, more importantly, what about curling, as in Olympics? I mean, does anyone watch that stuff? Is it really a "sport"? Seems a little strange to me; kind of like really expensive SkeeBall or something..... I actually watched about 10 minutes of that this year. It's just plain goofy. The Olympics are in serious need of a re-vamp, summer and winter (think "syncronized swimming" in the summer games, among others). [:-boggled Brother Morrison is just being a true HI. It's critical for us (HI's) to know the difference between opinion and fact, and to always state them as such. Plus he's a natural-born ball-buster. [:-dev3] Freeze/thaw as the primary culprit makes sense to me, since I hardly ever see a chimney like that down here. Usually I see them either tilting or settling, if anything. And while we're on it, what's the common fix for a chimney/fireplace that's tilting slowly away from the house? Can't they pump concrete or some thing under it to jack it back into position? Brian G. How About Syncronized Curling?! [:-dopey]

Joe Tedesco posted this over at the JLC forum. I thought everyone over here should see it too (FYI). http://www.local6.com/money/7302637/detail.html Brian G.

I can tell you from the photo that it is not a raintight panel, no way. Plus you can't flip a raintight, it won't work. Some conehead put an indoor panel on an exterior wall. Brian G. One of the Coneheads That Didn't Notice [:-dunce]

Now that's a good observation that slipped by before. It does look like it's outside, and it's definitely not a raintight panel. Was it outside Dave? Brian G. Water + Electricity = BAD! [:-wiltel]

During the summer I pretty much insist on starting in the morning, roof and attic first, followed by everything else outside. I only do one on any given day, so that solves most of my heat-danger issues. I did get called out to look at a roof & attic only last summer, and I was stuck doing it right after lunch (it paid well). I don't know what the temperature was, but when I inhaled it hurt a little. Never experienced that before. Did my thing and got the hell down from the attic. [:-hot] Brian G. What's the Treatment for Scorched Lung? [:-crazy]

I've always worn knee pads if I had to work on my knees, just because I have knobby knees and all of my weight winds up resting on two spots the size of a quarter. I thought it was a good article. I'm considering trying some new ones, but I don't know that I need the pricey Patella-T's for the small amount of use I would get from them these days. I'm looking at the McGuire-Nichols Rockers. I like the slim design and the hard cap for $20 less. Brian G. Captain Frugal [:-masked]

The only thing that ever scared me was a ceiling fan. I was working in a big wandering house, in a bedroom hardly anyone ever set foot in. The ceiling was vaulted, so the fan was hanging on about an 8 foot down-rod. There was only the one switch so I went over and turned it on "high" with the pull chain, then stepped over to the closet to check that out while the fan got going. I stepped back over to the fan without looking up at first, and when I did the damned thing was so far out of balance it had the light globe drawing three foot circles in the air above my head. I thought it was gonna frickin' decapitate me before I could get out from under it! Since then I turn the fans on high and step back without looking away. If it starts wobbling I turn it off pronto; that's all I need to know about that part. I also check for loose blades and grounding (via the trusty Fluke). Brian G. No "Fan" of Spinning Blades Over My Head [] [:-tong2]

Originally posted by Jim Katen The rule applies to any circuit breaker regardless of its purpose (main, branch, etc.). If it's oriented vertically, 'up' has to be on and 'down' has to be off. Ref: NEC 240.81. Since 1978 at least, possibly earlier. Ah-so. I thought so, but I wasn't 100% sure without looking it up. You da Main. [] Brian G. CRS Victim [:-dunce] www.accuspecllc.com

Mike's right, it's perfectly acceptable unless otherwise specified by the manufacturer. I sort of wonder about the ones with the main positioned vertically (there is a rule about "off" being handle-down and "on" being handle-up, but I can't recall if it would apply to a main), but this one is horizontal. Brian G. Mostly Horizontal Today [^] www.accuspecllc.com

Hmmmm. I'm not trained for thermal imaging and interpretation, but that one sure looks obvious. If those other burners are working I just lost all interest in owning an infrared camera (someday). Brian G. When Will Those Hit the $500 Mark? [:-slaphap

Rob, if that was originally a gas appliance I'd be way more worried about it burning the house down than how appropriate the venting might be. Converting a gas appliance to woodburning is nuts. The wood fire can get WAY hotter than the appliance is designed for or capable of handling. You're looking at a fire hazard, IMHO. Brian G. Send Up the Big Red Flag [:-scared] www.accuspecllc.com

I need the official, verifiable CE for my state, though I know without question that I learn more from other HI's through these message boards than any other source. Next door in 'Bama you must be a member of an approved organization as part of licensing, so it serves me there too. As far as getting business from the orgs, it doesn't happen in my postage stamp market. That's okay, I didn't join for that anyway. But the biggest reason is for the national and state impact of a large, well-organized, respected organization that can and does make a difference for our profession. Like Chris I don't agree with everything my bunch promotes, and on a few things I couldn't disagree more, but on the whole it's worth the effort. No matter who you join you can't have it all. Bitching rights are just a fringe benefit, but one we all enjoy from time to time. [:-grumpy] [] Brian G. Black Belt Bitcher (ASHI & ICC) [^] www.accuspecllc.com

Originally posted by randynavarro It appears the vinyl siding was installed after the electrical work. The original soffets were open and not enclosed. The soffets were enclosed with the new vinyl without regard to the electrical work or probably other existing components for that matter. I think that pretty much has to be it. I would note that it's "soffit" though. Brian G. The Speller's the Feller [^] www.accuspecllc.com

Whew! John my man, downsize those puppys before posting them next time. I'd say there's definitely a problem or two there. [] Moisture for sure, with structural concerns thrown in as a result. Those situations are usually a mess to sort out in a RE transaction too. How much damage is there, what's going to be repaired and what's going to be replaced, exactly what do you do about the mold, etc., etc., etc. Then half of the time your client wants you to check it all out when the work is supposed to be done. Not fun, these things. Brian G. Can't Figure Out How to Get a Living Out of Fun [:-irked] www.accuspecllc.com

It is a good find, but credit actually goes to "Phillip" over at the JLC boards (Electric Shop), who posted it there. I don't normally post the same thing all over the place, but I may spread this around. It's amazing, unexpected, and the bretheren need to know. Exploding dishwashers....who'd a thunk it? [:-splat] Brian G. What's Next...Exploding Drywall? [:-boggled

It's a new one on me, but apparently it's true. Check out the link. http://www.cdc.gov/elcosh/docs/d0400/d0 ... 00435.html Brian G. Constantly Amazed in This Business [:-bigeyes

I think it would function, assuming it's vented. However, there's this from the 2003 IRC: P3201.2 Trap seals and trap seal protection Traps shall have a liquid seal not less than 2 inches (51 mm) and not more than 4 inches (102 mm). There's one exception, for floor drains. I'd say what you've got there may hold more than 4 inches, but you'd know better than I and it seems like sort of a fine point anyway. Any plumbing guru's want to weigh in? Brian G. More Familiar With "Tender Traps" [:-eyebrow

Originally posted by Jim Katen I count three white wires per red wire nut. At each one, two come in from the left and one goes out to the right. I don't see a problem with this, do you? Nah, it just bothers me. Why wouldn't you simply splice and terminate each one individually? Would that be so hard? What if the total load on the 2 exceeds the allowable rating for the 1 (unlikely, but possible)? This method seems rather lazy and sloppy to me, which fits right in with the rest of the work. Brian G. Electrical Is a Bad Place to Cut Corners [:-dunce]

Originally posted by Bradd Judd P.S. Brian!!!!! What is up with that cat mask thing???!!!! It's hesterical!!!! LMAO, ROFL!!!! P.S.S. Can you get me one!!!???? I was just replacing the boring photo of me that's been up here for a couple of years with a favorite one of my boy. The mask came from the St. Louis Zoo two years ago, so I don't know if you can get one or not. Brian G. Discoverer of the Kudzu Tiger [^] [:-tiger]

Originally posted by Jim Morrison ...that costs $100-$200 more that is connected by push nipples in a press.... I would run with that, but it rates too high on the fish-in-a-barrel scale. [:-dev3] Truth to tell: My wood stove gets a harder workout than the boiler most days. It's a Vermont Castings Encore with a catalytic converter. Now that's a fine little piece of cast iron. As usual great minds think alike. I looked at a number of VC wood heaters this past winter, thinking towards next year. They have some very good stuff. However, the decision has been made to take a long, hard look at geothermal first. One should do well here, summer and winter, if we can swing it. I envy you the VC though. Brian G. VC Models Sound Like John Wayne Movies...The Defiant, The Resolute, etc. [:-cowboy]

Chuck, I agree that wire nut connections in panel are no problem, but I could swear I see 3 or 4 neutrals in a few of those connections. Am I seeing things? Having all of those grounds crammed into that one big split bolt is just plain wrong. Very unprofessional, unreliable for grounding, and you can bet your favorite ladder the split bolt is not rated for 57 #12's (none are). I always recommend the GFCI's, code or no code, for safety reasons. Who buys them or installs them, or even if they don't, is not our issue. Hopefully if the seller won't, the client will. The few chances I've had to to talk to sellers about this I've urged them to consider their own potential liability. A $10 GFCI can negate a million dollars in potential liabilty...a no-brainer. Brian G. Good at No-Brainers [:-boggled