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  1. LarryLeveen

    Leaking toilet tank mounting bolt — uneven tank walls/QC

    Heya. New house to us has leaky tank. Bought replacement kit and installed per directions. Leak NOT FIXED! Flashlight and investigation shows the likely culprit — on one side, the nut is not making nice, even contact on the metal washer and providing even pressure on the rubber seals on the...
  2. LarryLeveen

    Small Holes in Gas Furnace and Water Heater Exhaust Pipes

    I was surprised to see a small hole in each of the exhaust pipes for the gas furnace and water heater in my new-to-me house. Is there any reason why there would be a hole in an exhaust pipe like this? I certainly have never heard of one. They almost look intentional — or accidental but...
  3. LarryLeveen

    No Heat(er vents) in 2nd Floor of Older Home

    I just moved into an older (1918) 1,250 sq.ft., 1.5 story home in Tacoma, WA. Forced air gas furnace seems to work really well on the main floor (see pix of unit's "badge" at end of message), but there are no heater vents upstairs and we are curious about our options and what might be...
  4. LarryLeveen

    Air Bubble Causing Weak Flush Action?

    A toilet in the house we rent has a weak flush. I looked at many of the usual things and cleaned the siphon and bowl jets. I observed the flush action with the lid off and saw a large air bubble by the tank seal opposing the downward movement of the tank water into the bowl. Have folks...
  5. LarryLeveen

    Single Bang and Reduced Flow in Hot Water

    While visiting a friend, I took a shower and noticed a single distinct bang and great reduction in the flow of water from the hot water tap. What might cause this and how is it remedied? Is it causing harm to their plumbing? Thanks.
  6. LarryLeveen

    Venting Outside Door to Propane Water Heater "Shed"

    Firstly, apologies if this isn't the ideal forum to post this in. Feel free to redirect me to another forum. There is a rental cottage on our property that has an "external shed" attached to it. Does the door (removed in this photo because I need to strip and repaint it) need to have a vent...
  7. LarryLeveen

    OVAL shaped sink drain

    Changing the drain and pop-up for a bathroom sink. Whoa, the hole in the bottom of the sink is not round, but rather OVAL in shape (good grief, can NOTHING be simple in this house?!). The seal from the old drain clearly shows that it has been mated (under the pressure of a locknut) into a...
  8. LarryLeveen

    Bakelite Box Heck

    The receptacle mounting holes in a bakelite electrical box in my house are stripped. This is a different box than the one I recently posted about. Replacing the box is a pain in the butt so I'd like to avoid doing that...
  9. LarryLeveen

    Loose electrical box conundrum

    Older (1895) home has many electrical outlets installed in the tallish floor molding. One box, made of bakelite, is loose. The box is supposed to secure in place by tightening a screw in the very back of the box (fun!), which is threaded into a rigid strap of metal that presses on the back side...
  10. LarryLeveen

    Monitor GF 12 Propane Heater Fan Won't Turn On

    A small coaxially vented propane heater has power, will "click on" when the control knob is turned to "Run." The burner is working properly (gas is turned on and a full flame seen through the viewing window), but the fan never turns on. I _think_ I even hear a faint click after a minute or so --...
  11. LarryLeveen

    Troubleshooting Dead Outlets in Detached Workshop

    I moved into a house with a great detached workshop, except that several AC receptacles don't work: - one outside GFCI receptacle does not work, and neither the test nor reset buttons appear to function even when pressed firmly - four (of the eight) inside receptacles along two adjacent walls...
  12. LarryLeveen

    Diagnosing Tub Leak

    Older home (1897), ceramic-coated cast iron tub on second floor (set into a tiled cabinet/surround)leaked during and/or while draining a bath. Leak made its way through the ceiling of the kitchen below, dripping from a recessed light fixture. No leak was detected while filling the tub — someone...
  13. LarryLeveen

    Patch or Replace Plenum

    Helping a friend who has a 1-foot hole in the plenum of her forced air heating system. I haven't been under the house, but a few estimators have for rodent invasion and crawl space cleanout/vapor barrier replacement and re-insulation (both are trashed). UPDATE -- here are two pix I was sent by...
  14. LarryLeveen

    Check valve needed? Water on floor of basement.

    Moved into a new house several weeks ago -- have been using the plumbing and appliances (dishwasher & washing machine) as one usually might. Yesterday, I saw there was water on the floor of the basement. I did also see some shreds of paper-like material on the floor -- perhaps it was in the pipe...
  15. LarryLeveen

    Newbie seeks advice on simple-looking leak

    Found a leak under my bathroom sink. I think it is a simple one to fix, but would like some backup as I am a newbie at this. There was no moisture above the joint pictured (see below). You can see a water drop at the right hand side of a threaded section of pipe by a shutoff valve -- the...
  16. LarryLeveen

    New "high efficiency" system operating costs are HIGHER -- help!

    Replaced an aging oversized forced-air gas furnace and gas water heater with a high-efficiency Triangle Tube Prestige Solo 60 boiler, TT Smart indirect water heater and runtal radiators. We were annoyed to see that our gas and electric use have gone up and not down! The bill provides a...
  17. LarryLeveen

    Triangle Tube Prestige Boiler Problems, Solutions & Question

    We had a Prestige Solo 60 boiler installed with a new hydronic system. It seemed to be working OK, but when the weather got cold, it would display an error (I think error code 02 or 03) which meant that the boiler had tried the ignition sequence 5 times and was in a lockout mode. Hitting the...
  18. LarryLeveen

    What kind of wall construction is this?

    I've heard of sheetrock, and I've heard of lath-and-plaster, but I'm not familiar with what appears to be a thin sheetrock covered by a metal lathe and _then_ plaster, but it is in my 1937 house. It may be that this isn't what is used all over the house, but only in sections done later on...
  19. LarryLeveen

    Pump Location @ Lake Cabin

    Our cabin, only used during summer, uses water from the lake it is on. There is an external pump house near the lake. The pump has a shortish run from the lake (6' rise) and then pushes water uphill in a longer run to the cabin (~60' rise). The pump house is failing due to a combination of...
  20. LarryLeveen

    Questions to Ask Boiler Contractor

    I live in the west-side of WA state, where it rarely gets very cold. I am replacing aging gas forced-air furnace and gas tank-HWH. We have a small 1200sqft house that has been retrofit with insulation (walls, floors and attic). We are pretty good about not keeping the thermostat ~66 when we are...
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