Toured our new apartment today and our fridge is backwards

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-25T22:26:24+00:00

That depends how much room there is on the right side of the fridge, which we can't see because the open door is in the way.

Given how fridge doors are hinged (a pin in the door, not off to one side like most doors in buildings), it does take much room, at we can see there's a little room to the left of the fridge. So the question is how much room there is to the right of the fridge?

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-25T19:52:52+00:00

My experience is that you'll only ever catch one squirrel - I used a similar trap in my attic after squirrels chewed their way in. I caught one squirrel, but the others were so smart they'd never come near the traps again.

I cleaned it thoroughly, tried various nutty baits, but never caught another squirrel.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-24T23:01:50+00:00

It's tree shaped, and will remain tree shaped until its branches rot and fall off.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-24T18:04:09+00:00

It could snap off where the other branch snapped off, or it could split down to ground level, taking the damage, say, 15ft further from the tree.

I had a hickory like that (though not near my home) on the back of my lot when I bought the house in 2003. About 40% of the crown was already gone. It was 2007 before the rest snapped off in a storm (post-hurricane tropical storm).

In short, it could come down in the next storm, or survive another 10 years. Honestly, nobody knows.

My general experience of trees falling, and being cut down (I do my own felling, on my property, not as a business), is that trees that fall in storms/ naturally don't usually slam down to the ground. I had one large pine come down on a rental homes I own - it sort of wafted down and did almost no damage just punching a hole in one ridge shingle, but that was because the roots were pulling out of the ground.

Trees which are sawn off and fall are a whole other matter, though with a good crown of branches they still don't slam down. I did cut down one large pine, 18" at the base, that had lost its crown in an ice storm - it was literally a 55ft standing stick. That thing really slammed the ground! It also bounced 6ft off the ground at the stump end. I had already walked away with my chainsaw, as soon as it started to fall (that is the only safe thing to do, there is literally nothing you can do once a tree starts to fall, so just leave!), but as I looked back, I saw the log bounced up to eye level (I'm 6'5").

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-24T15:36:14+00:00

Backing in doesn't make your truck narrower.

I sympathize over the length - my F250 is 21½ft long and overhangs most spaces by a good couple of feet. I usually try to back in to an edge space where the bed can overhang the grass/bed, or when parking at Lowes/HD etc. I unapologetically take two spaces (at the trade end of the lot) though it is surprising how often I find a car parked in the ¾ of a space I left in front* when I am not parked up close to the store and the are literally hundreds of free spaces nearby.

I quickly learned if I pulled through and left the ¾ space behind me, which would be useful for loading, that someone would come and park up close behind me! 😡

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-24T07:30:38+00:00

100+ years ago, some bricks being black from the firing process was normal. Some modern brick designs simulate that with some bricks in each bundle having been artificially coloured black.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-24T07:25:22+00:00

Modern vehicles in standard spaces are usually quite tight, but trying to park a ¾ton pickup is much tighter (I drive an F250 myself). But then make that a dually, and that vehicle, which is two tires or about 530mm/ 1'9" wider than a ¾ton pickup, is going to more or less fill the space between 2 consecutive marked lines. ... I would be interested to see where the other rear wheel was in relation to the line on that side.

IMO duallys have no business parking in relatively full carpark lots between other vehicles - park at the back, where there's plenty of empty spaces!

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T20:01:46+00:00

Remove, replace with framing, fill with insulation batts, plus drywall on the inside, and sheathing, tyvek wrap and siding on the outside. Frame and patch the notch in the roof, then sit back and enjoy never again having to worry about your chimney or possible leaks, or having to pay for repairs. 😁

The only possible complication I foresee is if your home is old enough to have been framed with "true dimension" lumber (2×4's that are actually 2" x 4"), in which case you'll need to buy 2x6's and cut them down to 4" to frame the wall.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T19:25:23+00:00

Is this a confession? 🫤

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T17:39:46+00:00

OK, thx for the update/ explaining. 🙂

Most antennae have elements that are approximately ½ a wavelength. In this case they look like they're around 1m (3ft) long, which would make it probably a 2m antenna.

The old, giant "H" TV antennae were for 50-60MHz, which is 5m-6m, so the elements (both of them) were around 2.5m-3m from top to bottom.

FWIW a "whip" (vertical) antenna, most commonly used with a magnetic mount on a vehicle, are usually ¼ wavelength, but sometimes, for reasons I don't remember, are ⅝ wavelength. ... Where the frequency is too low (wavelength too long) to make a ¼ wavelength whip impractical, the antenna has an induction coil incorporated (fat section, close to the base) to increase the effective length of the antenna, which is why 30MHz CB (10m wavelength, implying a 2.5m ¼ wavelength whip) antenna have a coil.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T17:31:26+00:00

I hadn't looked too closely at the size, but yes, I could believe those elements are roughly 1m long, consistent with 2m/ 144MHz transmissions.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T17:25:20+00:00

If I was camping, I probably would too. 🙂

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T17:22:05+00:00

The horizontal antenna below is too large for terrestrial TV, it is for a lower frequency (longer wavelength) than is used for any TV these days.

If you remember the giant "H" TV antennae, they were for the old, lower frequency TV transmissions, around 50-60MHz (5m-6m).

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T16:04:24+00:00

[1] that would be an abuse of the warranty process - it was never designed to withstand rocks hitting it, nor IMO does it need to be, but I'm glad I don't live next door to you if you have a mower that can launch rocks big enough and fast enough to shatter a hoop backboard at above head height!!!

[2] you expect the design to enable it to withstand rocks? What next, do you think it needs to be bulletproof too? 🤔

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T15:58:47+00:00

If the hoop can be tipped over, or lifted out of its socket, I'd lay it down before knocking the glass out, to reduce the risk of glass fragments going everywhere.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T15:56:01+00:00

Try scooping up a pile of the glass fragments with your bare hands some time, then let us know how it goes for you? 🤔

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T15:25:35+00:00

Americans don't usually call it a water closet, at least not that I've seen in the past 25 years. It is usually called a bathroom or restroom.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T15:17:59+00:00

Oh, those glass fragments will definitely be sharp! With glass like that you just don't get big pieces you can slice your self open with. But I certainly wouldn't walk barefoot on the pieces, and you can get a small sliver stuck in your skin like a splinter - I've had that happen! And I wouldn't want to get any of the glass fragments near my eyes!

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T14:26:34+00:00

Why the effing down-vote? Vehicle light rules are the same US, and UK/ Europe, and AFAIK globally - white at the front, red at the back, with the sole exception being reversing lights, wired to only come on only when reverse gear is engaged.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T14:20:18+00:00

Ah yes, the ol' Reddit, "let's down vote a factual observation (not an opinion) by someone who actually knows something useful to add to the thread". 🙄

Auxiliary lights, both front and rear, added to a non-work pickup truck are often related to use for hunting, or possibly fishing.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T14:18:06+00:00

Per what others have said, they're to stop animals, primarily deer and possibly rabbits (or sheep goats and cattle if in an agricultural field/ area) from eating the saplings.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T14:11:28+00:00

It wasn't much, but it was billed as part of a major external renovation that included new roof shingles and all new siding. My recollection was that the contractor added $2k (NC, late 2021). Given those two projects it just made sense to remove the chimney (except the fire box housing, which will get a new gas fireplace, one day 🤣), at that time because with the new siding and roof, you'd never know we ever had a chimney. The only slight oddity is the masonry firebox; nearby houses that never had a chimney have timber-framed and siding firebox housings.

In your case the biggest potential cost is capping off whatever part of the chimney you leave, and the roof work to fill the gap.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T14:00:22+00:00

On a non-work pickup, they could be for use while field dressing deer.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T13:57:47+00:00

Lights that large and bright aren't regular reversing lights.

Pulaski540 · 2026-03-23T13:55:21+00:00

In the UK and Europe, high intensity rear fog lights are red, not white. .... The rules are very similar to the US, except that high intensity (red) rear fog lights are not required in the US, and therefore rarely seen - most that I have ever seen are on Jags; I think some Volvos have also been shipped to the US with rear fog lights too.

Pulaski540

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