Homeowner Forum / Repair / February 2008

I'm almost finished installing a suspended ceiling in my basement. While
it's straight and looks good overall, there are several places that I really
would like to clean it up.
How does one create a clean joint between two pieces of "L" bracing (along

What should the current draw be with a car parked, for the night, not
running, Volvo v40 with factory alarm but never activated. How do you
check this. In the morning my battery is low. Can I use a 120v digital
clamp on amp meter.

Our bathroom has that white spray-on crunchy stuff that's on almost
every ceiling nowadays.  I don't know what it's called, but it looks like
cottage cheese.  Anyhow, just above the shower, there's a spot where the
previous owners apparently "repaired" some missing bits, but they ...

Dear Sir/Madam
I am a student of Warsaw School of Economics. I write a master's
thesis about opinions on the competitiveness of companies.
I would like to ask you to fill in the survey (link below) by you and

I want to remove a load-bearing wall that separates my living room
from my kitchen.  The attic is constructed of regular roof rafters and
the span is roughly 25 feet.  I'm exploring different methods of
accomplishing this.  The obvious method is to install a beam, but I

I have a old, thin-walled house with external galvanized iron dwv
servicing the kitchen sink and dish washer. The dwv is rusting through
in spots and needs to be replaced. The nearest location in the house
where a vent pipe can be run internally to the roof is at the utility

I have a 220V submercible well pump.  I am not going to even try to
describe the location of the control box, pressure switch, etc.  It's
an odd situation because the pressure tank is in an underground
concrete pit and the control box is in my garage, with the well

I have a small cabin (20x24) located in an area with sandy soil.  The
foundation is wood as is the floor of the basement which is 3/4" plywood
(presumably treated) over 2x8 floor joists.
I'm installing radiant tubing in the building including in the basement.

I have a Tempstart Heater that will not turn the blower off after I
turn it on from the thermostat.  The fan still run even when I swith
off, just cold air.  The only way to shut it off is to open up the
heater panel and reset the button inside the heater.  It was working

I'm shopping for an electric  brad nail gun and found only a few models
available. On many reviews I read, a commom complaint is underpower. These
nail guns all have the same design: a large electric magnet that is
energized by the trigger and pulls a hammer to drive the nail.

Ok, so first time in my life I'm a homeowner, and also first time I have
baseboard heat. The problem is the noise that the baseboard makes when
the thermostat turns the heat off.
The noise is like a big bang or clunk. And when more than one heaters do

Is it possible to solder the shiny metal (chrome-plated?) that small
telescoping antennas are made out of?   The kind used on cordless
phones and portable transistor radios.
How would I do this?   Silver solder?

Ideally wires going into a wire nut will have only so much bare wire
so that that bare wire is entirely underneath the nut and you only see
insulated wire coming out the bottom.  It seems like by design there's
maybe a 1/4" of insulation tucked up in the nut (measuring from the

Endless instant hot water for 1 sink at a time
99% efficiency rating
Solid copper heat exchanger
Copper-sheathed heating elements

I just created a new website dedicated to building a display case for
a running model train.  The design shows how to build a display case
mounted only six inches below the cieling, that runs around the
parimeter of the room.  It works in almost any room, and it doesn't