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Hi- I've had the tubing from my condensate pump (connected to my dehumidifier) draining into my utility sink for quite some time. I've recently had a few instances in which the tubing wound up out of the sink, on the floor. I'd like to tie into the sink drain to prevent this and to have a...

Hi- I've got very sharp texture (my wife once cut herself on it) on both sides of the stairs leading down to my basement. What would be a reasonable way for me to remove this? Wet it, scrape it off, and 1/4" drywall over it? Or drywall over it without scraping? Skim coat? Something else? It is a...

Hi folks, I am replacing an old pedestal sink in our powder room (1921 house). The shutoff valves and p-trap were threaded. Fortunately, I was able to get them removed with little trouble. Unfortunately, one of the two valves I bought at HD was in the wrong box and I wound up with a 3/4" valve I...

Hello- I am looking at having a Fujitsu mini split system (A/C and heat pump) system installed in my old (1921) home (~ 1500 sq ft). Due to aesthetics and lack of open wall space on the first floor, a ducted (not ductless) mini split with 2 ducted units was recommended for the first floor, and...

Last week, while someone was in the upstairs shower stall (right after I showered), I found water dripping from my first floor ceiling - not a deluge, but more than a few drips, enough to cause some ceiling drywall damage. Note that it was raining heavily that day. I then augured the shower...

I bought an old home which still has the original 1920 snowman boiler. I am having that replaced with a modern gas-fired steam boiler and will also have the gas water heater replaced (the previous owners leased it from an appliance company and it's 8 years old). The plumber that I have chosen to...

I just moved into a temporary rental which advertised laundry hookups. The duplex was completely rebuilt and the hookups had not been used. Pictures of the room are posted below. There is no standpipe. I told the property management company that there is no way for me to drain the washer and...

Happy New Year. I had a plumber come to install a drain for a utility sink in my garage. This is what he did. I'm not a plumber, but I thought that the sink drain had to run into a vertical drain. The drain stack is behind that wall stud, to the left of the fitting that he installed. The copper...

I bought a 240V garage heater that I am mounting on the ceiling near my circuit panel. Would connecting the 1/2" whip directly to the panel violate code? Or do I have to use EMT to run a junction box and then connect the whip to that? Thanks

We've got a Buderus G115 that was installed shortly before we moved in a few months ago. My wife noticed this evening that we lost hot water and when I checked the boiler, the display showed 'burner error' and the [incorrect] time was flashing. As per the manual, I pressed the reset button, but...

I would like to install a utility sink in my garage. On the other side of the wall is a bathroom and the bathroom sink. I've read different sites and postings about utility sinks and sometimes the discussions about different types of vents confuses me. I would like to know the basic premise so...

We just purchased a home that has a Carrier Infinity system. We were in the house yesterday and the thermostat read 80 degrees, although it did not feel quite that warm in the house. I manually set the temp to 74 degrees and even though I could hear the fan running and air blowing, the house did...

I've searched the archives here regarding replacing a sump pump. We're closing on our new house and the sump pump is shot. I don't recall the horsepower. It is a split-level house (in Massachusetts) in which the basement is finished living space. The sump pit is in the furnace room. Anyhow, The...

My home was built in the late 1950s. I've got two copper pipes (see photos) protruding from the concrete slab. When we bought the house, we were told that they are not used for anything. Is there a way I can verify this so that I can know for sure that they are safe to cut and cover up? Thanks

My house is approximately 1600 square feet (1950s split-level house with cathedral ceiling for the middle and top floor). My 19,000 BTU Friedrich wall unit just died (perfect timing!). I'm having trouble picking out a new unit with all of the choices (there is no exact retrofit). I'm wondering...

We've got an old Friedrich QuietMaster wall AC unit (I'm guessing about 18K BTU ?) that appears to have kicked the bucket today -- it's not blowing cold air anymore. I've never dealt with wall units before and would like to know if I can replace this unit with any wall unit that has dimensions...

I have a Homeline HOM20M100C panel in my house and wanted to add a circuit in the garage, but have no open breaker slots. I just read online that this panel does not allow tandem breakers, yet there are currently 2 tandem breakers in my panel (they were there before I bought the house). Are...

I'm interested in installing a utility sink in my basement but have no idea about the requirements for the drain. Here is a photo of the drain pipe. I'm looking to do this cheaply. Am I able to drain the sink into this main drain pipe? Thanks

We live in a 1500 square foot house (split level) that is heated by oil, in Connecticut. My wife works from home, so setting the temperature too low during the day isn't tolerable. Here are 2 questions from her: 1. Last winter, we had it set to 68 during the day (I was still a little...

For the past 6 months, I've been using a Whirlpool under the sink water filter, with good results. However, today was time to change the cartridge, and getting in the sink cabinet and loosening the unit was torturous. I'd like to install the unit in the basement, directly below the sink, where...