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Hello, My home was built in 1950, in southeast PA. It has wood sash, double hung windows with single pane glass. The sashes are supported (balanced) by long (approximately 30 inches long x 3/8" outside diameter) coil springs, fastened at the top to a screw in the jamb, and fastened at the...

Hello, I am trying to install a new dining room chandelier. The old one was working fine, until it died. I can't say exactly what the cause was for the old fixture to fail. I have installed the new fixture and can't get it to work. There are two switches feeding the fixture, one is a...

Hello all, What is the verdict on using liquid mildew inhibitors added to interior latex paint? I need to repaint a bathroom due to mildew on the ceiling. The ceiling adjoins the attic and an outside wall. The attic is very cold in the winter, and moisture condenses on the ceiling and mildew...

Hello guys, here's another one for you. I have an old (like most stuff in the house I live in) NuTone musical door chime. It is electronic and you can select several different songs. It has a speaker like you would find in a radio or stereo. It is a two button (two door) chime. It is fed...

Hello all, I have a pretty typical 4 panel sectional overhead garage door. The motor pulls from the center, the spring is a torsion type, there is one track on each side, and 5 rollers on each side. Maybe 3 or so months ago the rollers started eating themselves. I didn't notice any...

Hello all, I searched this site on this question, and I think (hope) what I want to do is OK. Presently my ac condensate line is plumbed via 1/2" PVC to a vertical, open (to the air) drain pipe in the basement concrete floor. There is an "air gap" and the condensate line is not solidly...

Hello all. I want to know what my options are for a laundry/utility faucet. I am putting my darkroom back together, and need a faucet which mounts to the rough plumbing and will be attached to the concrete block wall. I have checked Kohler, Delta and Pfister and haven't seen anything I like...

Good afternoon all, I am replacing an old metal drum trap, presently installed in a kitchen sink/disposer situation. The outlet from the disposer is about 3" above the horizontal trap arm. My problem is I don't think a standard PVC 1-1/2" p-trap assembly will work. It seems to me the...

Hello. I have a toilet color I am trying to match to an existing Kohler color code. The old toilet (inoperattive, being thrown out) has a suffix "-EB". To my eye, the color of the old toilet looks like biscuit. The only other candidate in my mind is almond. Does anyone know what this...

I am replacing an old toilet that had a elevated (separate) cistern, and the bowl is less than 12" rough in from the wall. 1. Does it make sense that the old bowl (for the elevated cistern) is less than 12" rough in? 2. Are there any differences or things to watch out for when...

I have an old (30 yrs, roughly) toilet with a separate, elevated tank and old fashioned long pull chain. The bowl mounting flanges have broken, so I need a new bowl. It is a Kohler model, but looking at their website, it doesn't seem like this type of toilet is sold anymore. Can anyone...

Can PVC schedule 40 be used for a threaded tub spout nipple? I have been struggling to stop leaks coming from a copper nipple that I made from sweat fittings and 1/2" copper pipe. I believe I have traced the leaks to damaged (prior to my purchasing) male threads on the copper male adapter...

I want to make better use of the space in my narrow laundry room. The washer water supply and drain come up through the floor. The washer sits against an outside (garage) wall. I want to put the plumbing into the stud cavity, to allow the washer to sit tight against the wall, gaining some...

My basement fireplace has not been used for several years. It seems to be functional, but the damper mechanism is finicky. I took a close look at it and everything seems to be in place. The problem is the damper door can get out of whack and not close properly, unless you fuss with the lever...

My home was built in 1950, with walls made of 24 inch plaster board, brown coat and finish coat. I have some finish coat cracking (delaminating) away from the brown coat, on an exterior wall on the first floor of a two story house. The area in question is not below a window or downspout, and...

I have a steel entry door, with steel jamb, between the garage and kitchen. The weatherstripping is worn out and I want to replace it. However, I can't find a manufacturer's name on the door or jamb, and I can't get the old weatherstripping out without completely destroying it. I've...

I'll be remodelling a 5x5 powder room soon. Using travertine floor, base moulding and wainscoting. Question is what to do about the door and door casing? The door is a 6 panel solid pine, that is finished with stain. The existing casing is stained pine, in a cheesy 1980's style, with...

I foolishly used duct tape to secure a drop cloth while installing mud walls in my tub alcove. The tape left some adhesive goo. What solvent or cleaner can I used that won't damage the acrylic finish? I'm a big fan of Goof-Off, but this is the chemical xylene, which I think is a solvent...

I will install new baseboards in a bathroom remodel project. The plan is to use a built-up design including painted S4S pine as the base, with a base cap on top of the S4S. Question: My door casing is about 9/16" thick. Am I making a trim carpentry faux pas by using the heavy S4S base...

These things are terrible in my part of southeast Pennsylvania. Every year there are people in my neighborhood that lose significant patches of lawn to these things. I have skunks continually digging small holes in my lawn to get at the grubs. I know they are sod webworms because I have...