John Kogel

Yes, thanks for sharing. Most people learned to drive by making a lot of small errors and sliding just a bit a few times. Or just reading about it works too. Read about your headplant over the handlebars, yep, that's educational stuff. [] A rope in the truck makes me feel more secure, although I never use it. I could use it if I had to reach a chimney and I will someday when I don't have the right ladder with me.

Drone hits the White House lawn. Flown by a govt employee, that's right, paid for by your taxes, now watch for the ban and restrictions on all drone flights everywhere. [] http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2475825,00.asp

Is that dried blood?

I guess it depends. I don't have to get suited up unless it's an old dirt hole or a MH. After about 1980, crawlspaces here have a concrete skim coat and the newer ones are insulated and heated. Nothing scary down there but a few spiders. If the access is reasonable, I suggest people store their Xmas decorations in there. That will force them to check the crawlspace twice. They can do the same with their attic.

We send the old tanks to China and now we are buying that old steel back as new units. So all bets are off as far as brands go, IMO. I find in my country nothing used to last longer than a Giant, made in Quebec.

If the area is dry, they can sweep off the crystals and forget they were there. I sometimes tell people to check their attics and crawls a couple times a year for moisture, rodent damage, fungus. They will know what to look for, damage and they know how to Google it, maybe. []

I think black gunk from a caulking gun. He glued the batts to the rafters.

That's funny. In my tool bucket I used to pack a multi-tool clawhammer, pliers, saw thing and yep, never used it. I let a realtor borrow it once to tighten some screws, and that kept him busy for quite a while, trying various bits and grabbers. One of those bracelets would be a pretty good distraction device. [] Pliers, visegrips, hammer stay in the truck. I don't break stuff as much as I used to. I should stop carrying the clear packing tape.

The Sharkbites have a tool that slips around the pipe that you use to release the gripper rings to remove them. I would only use them where they are accessible for inspection and replacement. Time will tell how long the rubber gaskets will last. The compression rings you had to cut were copper? Those rings can't be replaced but they last forever.

Are the floor joists above supported by the basement block partition? One way to tell is to look for splices in the joists where they rest on the wall. If so, the block wall is supporting the structure, it is likely original and probably has a good footing. Moving the walls above is not an option for a novice. A simple basement partition that runs parallel to the joists or has joists continuing full length to a beam beyond, is likely just sitting on a thin slab. That wall would not qualify as a support for walls above, although it could be upgraded with posts and a beam. It needs engineering.

Yes a trap and air gap, minimum. I had an interesting installation in a basement. The sewer line was elevated about 5 feet up the exterior wall. Mr Handy extended the washer hose straight up to the floor joists, about 8 feet. Then he had a trap with about a 10" stand pipe and then ABS hung from the joists to the main stack at the sewer pipe. I checked the manual for the appliance and the specs gave a max head of 9 feet. So I simply described it as unconventional and warned that the short standpipe might leak. This other guy did this, basement laundry. He put the standpipe up to just short of the ceiling, with the trap at about 4 feet above the floor. Then he had a tee just above the trap, with the washer hose sealed with a pipe fitting and hose clamp to the tee. So the standpipe provides the air gap and it works. I voiced my disapproval for CYA but thot it was workable.

Marc I could search for pics. The domestic supply is kept separate by running a pipe with a check valve to the heating loop. That supply Tee will have a shutoff valve and the check valve supplies make-up water to the closed loop when it is needed. Here are two systems both with tanks added. The first was a residence of about 2400 sq ft. This was a repo, not completed. The big Veismann system 3rd pic was in a colossal residence with a theatre and games room but only 3 bedrooms. Click to Enlarge 47.89 KB Click to Enlarge 37.04 KB Click to Enlarge 74.99 KB

Right, the only correct answer is the one you get from the official in your district. In my area, you could get the septic tank and field inspected by a reputable contractor who installs septic systems. Then take that report to your building inspection department if they ask for one. BTW, the system is only 5 years old? Sure he didn't just have it pumped 5 years ago because people will make stuff up when nothing is on paper and it is all underground. Pun. [] The tank should be pumped out now. Spend $350 and save the system by pumping the sludge out of the first tank. Every 3 to 5 years it should be pumped out. The tank should be empty for a proper inspection, so you get a guy that does both. You might want him to scope the drain lines if there is any sign of failure. If he doesn't have a pipe camera, hire someone that does.

For floor heat, I sometimes see Tankless with a 40 gal storage tank added. Kinda funny actually. []

Jim P, you are an electrician. Exposed NM, like hanging from a garbage disposer, is a code violation, no? AC is ok clamped to the wall, correct?

Same here. In Chicago, it will forever be BX and/or romex and trying to make it otherwise is pointless. Nobody cares about these distinctions except us. I often explain in off hand comments that I call it this way because that's how everyone recognizes it, and if anyone hears it being called otherwise, OK, I told you first. "Flexible conduit" []

Jim B is correct. BX is a 1930's product. I call for the "wiring in flexible conduit" to be clamped out of the way sometimes. I always check for a loose clamp where the cable attaches to the unit. I will always call out NMD without the conduit. It is vulnerable to damage under the sink. NMD with a plug attached is double wrong.

That is an interesting challenge. With a partial hookup, generator circuits in a subpanel, the other lights come back on independent of the gen. But you are killing power to the house entirely with your transfer switch. Now you need a volt meter to measure incoming power from the pole. But no current will flow, so it can't be a clamp type ammeter which measures current. A 120 volt LED bulb tapped between one power lead and the neutral. Rob the light out of a cheap power bar.

They didn't just pour concrete over the old wood porch, or did they? [:-crazy]

We would call that a Craftsman style. I think the house is older and the porch was rebuilt, with that added section that is not under the roof. Amateurs didn't prep the fill properly and forgot the drainage. The original crafts-men would have put scuppers in the walls for drainage and the wood floor would have been completely under the roof.

But how do you know if it is unnecessary if no one looks? I inspect the house and find abandoned K&T and new wiring with no issues.

Yes but it could be an unnecessary expense is what I mean. Most people (working person, too old to be in any attic, scared of spiders, just plain scared) will have to hire somebody to dig all that old wire out of the insulation. Because Mr Inspector said so. []

It could be intensive therefore expensive labour not really accomplishing anything. A few abandoned wires strung through ceiling joists and partly buried in insulation, who cares? Certainly if there is a fear that the old wire could become re-enrgized, or if it wasn't bypassed properly, sure, remove it.

Does anyone not call for its removal? Abandoned wire needs to be removed why? So it won't confuse a home inspector? []

OK then, how does a home inspector ID live K&T in an attic or crawlspace? I suppose you can simply call for removal, even if it is abandoned?