Home and garden projects
Apr 13th 2019, 1:12 pm
#1321
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
Twist on wire connectors are more complicated than one would imagine. The IDEAL company is the major manufacturer and their website or others can provide useage charts. There are wire nuts and wing nuts. The largest one is a blue wing nut to be used for #12 wire greater that four. The red wing nut can hold more than a red wirenut. In any case you just have to select what is required for the size and number of wires you are twisting together to comply with code and manufacture recommendations. I used to frequent a electrician chat website when I was wiring my house and was surprised by the many difference of opinions concerning electrical code interpretations.
Last edited by ddsrph; Apr 13th 2019 at 1:57 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 2:16 pm
#1322
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,448
Re: Home and garden projects
Twist on wire connectors are more complicated than one would imagine. The IDEAL company is the major manufacturer and their website or others can provide useage charts. There are wire nuts and wing nuts. The largest one is a blue wing nut to be used for #12 wire greater that four. The red wing nut can hold more than a red wirenut. In any case you just have to select what is required for the size and number of wires you are twisting together to comply with code and manufacture recommendations. I used to frequent a electrician chat website when I was wiring my house and was surprised by the many difference of opinions concerning electrical code interpretations.
And these are the wire nuts I have, plus some unusual cream colored ones (I don't think they're the tan ones referred to above) that are about the same size as the orange, and some tiny yellow ones the same size as the blues, that came with ceiling fans.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 13th 2019 at 2:21 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 2:40 pm
#1323
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
Go to the ideal website and look at their chart. You will see the blue wing nut. I used them in the past. They are interchangeable with wire nuts if you follow the min and max wire size combinations. The blue wing nut is especially useful for wires larger than 10 gauge but can be used for larger number of #12’s. The picture you posted is wire nuts not wing nuts. Wing nuts are more commonly used due to better grip for tightening. Please post the wing nut chart I don’t know how to do that from my iPhone.
Last edited by ddsrph; Apr 13th 2019 at 2:44 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 3:15 pm
#1324
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,448
Re: Home and garden projects
I can't find a complete suite of wing nut style wire nuts, but I did find this, which I think illustrates your point.
BTW Have you considered upgrading to an android phone?
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 13th 2019 at 3:30 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 3:35 pm
#1325
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
If you went to the ideal website you saw the blue wing nut that is one size larger than the red. I was just there myself and saw the picture of the series you just posted. I also saw the series ,just seconds ago , that includes the larger blue size. If you want to insist it doesn’t exist in the interest of never being wrong I fully understand.
Apr 13th 2019, 3:42 pm
#1326
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,448
Re: Home and garden projects
If you went to the ideal website you saw the blue wing nut that is one size larger than the red. I was just there myself and saw the picture of the series you just posted. I also saw the series ,just seconds ago , that includes the larger blue size. If you want to insist it doesn’t exist in the interest of never being wrong I fully understand.
I added abother picture above, perhaps while you were posting, with a blue nut that is larger than the red.Mrs P would be happy to confirm that I am wrong more often than I think I am.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 13th 2019 at 3:46 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 4:03 pm
#1327
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
Apologies for last post. I need to learn how to post photos. I just tried to post a photo from my phone and can never get it to work. When I decided to wire my new house I spent many hours online and reading trying to come up to speed on codes and one recommendation that turned out to be very valuable was a book titled “WIRING A HOUSE” by Rex Caldwell. I highly recommend it for anyone doing their own residential electrical work.
Apr 13th 2019, 4:35 pm
#1328
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,448
Re: Home and garden projects
Apr 13th 2019, 4:49 pm
#1329
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
I used to hot-link directly to other pictures, but I don't know if it is still possible since they changed the BE site structure. However it is now easy to download a picture from a web site, then upload (using the picture icon above the text box) the picture from the downloads folder of my "device".
Apr 13th 2019, 5:32 pm
#1330
Boomshacalaca!!
Joined: Dec 2005
Location: South of the North Pole.......Colorado
Posts: 5,066
Re: Home and garden projects
I would recommend you to replace toilet tank's seals and bolts (especially if you are seeing rust stains) to avoid "misfortunes". My tank came off yesterday and dumped its water all over the place. I laugh now, but the panic is worsened from restricted ankles and certainly make reaction times problematic, I can tell ya! The bolts had corroded as well as the rubber after all these years; thank goodness I don't need to replace the toilet but I am now replacing all hardware as a precaution in all the toilets! It is NOT recommended to use those in tank cleaner pucks as those are the source of the corrosion ... the more you know!! 
Apr 13th 2019, 5:37 pm
#1331
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2001
Location: Dixie, ex UK
Posts: 52,448
Re: Home and garden projects
I would recommend you to replace toilet tank's seals and bolts (especially if you are seeing rust stains) to avoid "misfortunes". My tank came off yesterday and dumped its water all over the place. I laugh now, but the panic is worsened from restricted ankles and certainly make reaction times problematic, I can tell ya! The bolts had corroded as well as the rubber after all these years; thank goodness I don't need to replace the toilet but I am now replacing all hardware as a precaution in all the toilets! It is NOT recommended to use those in tank cleaner pucks as those are the source of the corrosion ... the more you know!!
If you have the toilet dismantled you should consider replacing not only the bolts and bolt seals, but also the main tank seal, where it meets the pan, and the whole flush mechanism. ... If you're replacing the flush lever remember it screws in place with an anti clockwise thread.
Last edited by Pulaski; Apr 13th 2019 at 5:46 pm.
Apr 13th 2019, 6:11 pm
#1332
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Apr 2014
Location: Lauren's Co. SC by way of Palmetto, Florida
Posts: 3,265
Re: Home and garden projects
Now the midwest winter is finally over, projects are starting this weekend!
Aside from little things around the house, I want to get the back yard all finished and complete. This is going to involve taking down the old decking, breaking up the concrete, putting down new turf (Sorry, but I refuse to call it sod!), redoing the plant areas, and painting the garage. We will be getting rid of the decking completely, and installing wooden steps that will go down onto the new patio where the concrete was. Once this is down, and the planting areas have been done, then new turf can go down! Few questions:
1) Wife wants flagstone. I've never worked with that before. What are thoughts? Easy to install? I've read it's a case of making sure run off water goes away from the house, and you can just lay it on top of dirt. Is it really this 'simple'?
2) If flagstone isn't recommended, what would you recommend? Looking for something quick and easy to install!
2) The new steps. How easy is it to install just a set of steps from the back door to the ground? We just want some wooden steps.
Aside from little things around the house, I want to get the back yard all finished and complete. This is going to involve taking down the old decking, breaking up the concrete, putting down new turf (Sorry, but I refuse to call it sod!), redoing the plant areas, and painting the garage. We will be getting rid of the decking completely, and installing wooden steps that will go down onto the new patio where the concrete was. Once this is down, and the planting areas have been done, then new turf can go down! Few questions:
1) Wife wants flagstone. I've never worked with that before. What are thoughts? Easy to install? I've read it's a case of making sure run off water goes away from the house, and you can just lay it on top of dirt. Is it really this 'simple'?
2) If flagstone isn't recommended, what would you recommend? Looking for something quick and easy to install!
2) The new steps. How easy is it to install just a set of steps from the back door to the ground? We just want some wooden steps.
Steps are easy enough to cut, stringers are a bit of a faff if you aren't used to doing them but once you have the maths sussed you can do them quickly with a roofers square, two stair gauges (cheap from Lowe's/HD) and a steady hand on a skill saw.
If you want to cut your own I can work through the setting out process for you - but I'm not going to do it unless you want to do them! There are probably heaps of vids on the net but there are some handy tips that a tradesman uses that a DIY vid poster might not know!
Apr 13th 2019, 10:30 pm
#1333
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jun 2015
Location: Near Lynchburg Tennessee, home of Jack Daniels
Posts: 1,381
Re: Home and garden projects
Lowes sells precut stair stringers made from pressure treated pine. They are in the area where the deck material is located. A nice touch to wooden steps is to pour a small landing pad from sacrete concrete mix. I usually make a form from two by fours and dig out inside to get a good concrete thickness. Having a edging tool helps round and smooth the edges then use a broom to get a non skid finish.
Apr 14th 2019, 12:14 am
#1334
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jun 2011
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,159
Re: Home and garden projects
Anyone got a tankless water heater?
If so does it have service valves?
Just discovered that ours does not and I'll need to get them plumbed in order to descale the unit.
If so does it have service valves?
Just discovered that ours does not and I'll need to get them plumbed in order to descale the unit.
Apr 14th 2019, 12:22 am
#1335
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Mar 2015
Location: NC, USA (ex Yorkshire)
Posts: 4,375
Re: Home and garden projects
That really sucks that the plumber did not add those as part of installation.
Its probably diyable, but I'd still get a pro to do the work.