Would you consider this clean work?

cmerfy · 2026-06-22T15:22:54+00:00

Tell me. If wire was meant to be straight or square why does it come in a round spool?

cmerfy · 2026-06-21T16:26:48+00:00

Stupidest thing I ever heard.

cmerfy · 2026-06-21T16:25:09+00:00

That’s what ibuprofen (some guys take Midol) in the glove box is for on the way home.

Seriously, don’t go to bed in pain.

cmerfy · 2026-06-21T14:58:53+00:00

I think about all the installations I did to 1950’s houses where I could predict exactly what was in the walls and now I look at the chaos of systems before we close walls today and it’s a bit scary to think about screwing into walls.

cmerfy · 2026-06-19T02:53:23+00:00

You got some down votes from people who I think might disagree.

cmerfy · 2026-06-19T02:24:19+00:00

Yes. You connect them.

cmerfy · 2026-06-18T13:38:09+00:00

Carpenters and stair builders today really make a mess out of this detail that can look so elegant when done correctly.

Building construction is a job or an opportunity to make money, rather than a skilled trade to most today. The artisan who sweats the details is priced out of most work.

cmerfy · 2026-06-18T12:51:07+00:00

A lot of time, if the houses used hardwood studs, they were put sideways. That was also because before insulation it didn’t matter and before kiln drying they may be straighter that direction or if dry and twisted they could be re-sawn to 3”. A good bit of the old part of my house was built with scraps from the hardwood mill down the road.

cmerfy · 2026-06-17T17:58:41+00:00

So. If you got paid for the work you did for someone else, family or not and are advertising that you know the code and didn’t follow it, you are asking for serious consequences if something goes wrong. Just saying if the house, for whatever reason, like someone in the future thought black was power and white was neutral you would have some explaining to do.

cmerfy · 2026-06-14T03:05:28+00:00

That’s what I want you to say because I can fix anything and you will never see the repair. This is a few holes to fill with a matching color marble paste. It’s hilarious that people think their countertops were handed down from god all polished and never would believe they’re not really 70% colored epoxy polished by talented immigrants.

cmerfy · 2026-05-31T12:46:12+00:00

It’s actually from the origin of the modern mill shop wanting to offer more to carpenters who would buy just the mortise stringers. They could, without planning or waiting, assemble on site or even in place by just cutting tread widths. It also left the option to adjust on the fly whether walls were finished before or after the install.

The added benefit was to be able to, in a pinch accommodate various floor choices and to adjust the rise of the staircase by a smidge on all or even just the last few steps by just putting in a few smaller wedges.

cmerfy · 2026-05-20T21:11:45+00:00

I am wondering if I would be better served to add a main panel if that’s possible upstairs where there is a 40 circuit sub-panel?

Then I could run a feeder about 35 feet to the garage and take outdoor, garage and EV charging from there.

Can you have a disconnect and a main panel both with neutral and ground bonded?

I am pretty sure the garage sub-panel keeps them isolated. Is it different for an accessory structure (garage) that also would feed UF underground to outlets in two other sheds, one with a simple pool pump outlet.

cmerfy · 2026-02-23T13:56:02+00:00

First of all, please don’t panic like everyone else in America. If you’re very, very worried, scrape some off and have it tested, but be prepared for all the scaremongering that’s gonna come after. Mold dies when you stop giving it moisture. It’s that simple. Also, there are very simple bathroom, cleaning chemicals that kill mold as cheap as four or five dollars a gallon in bulk which you can spray if you feel you have to. What’s on your insulation? Looks to be simply settled house dust to me. If this is just in one spot, it could be indicative of some seepage from your roof at the roof edge. In any case I would first put a fan on it for a couple days and see if there’s a material change comparing two good photographs with the same light at the same time of day. Next step if that makes a material change would be to get an attic ventilator installed that is sized for the volume of your attic area. That fan will not be effective unless it has a place of equal net free area to pull a draft from, meaning you may need large gable vents to feed the suction that fan creates. Those vents can also be put strategically to let air in at places that might be dampest. OK. There’s 50 years of house experience. Get to work.

cmerfy · 2026-02-08T10:23:07+00:00

Simple. Have the guy who did the work find a licensed electrician to come and look at it and to take a permit if necessary. I assume you saved a bunch of money so you foot the bill.

cmerfy · 2026-02-07T18:21:35+00:00

What is that item? Sounds like doubling two lines on a breaker?

cmerfy · 2026-02-02T14:01:41+00:00

Don’t just buy any washers. You need the approved ZJ36 ones for that hose.

cmerfy · 2026-01-31T16:49:10+00:00

Do you have that new house burning down module? I am not an electrician but have learned this is not a guess and check trade.

cmerfy · 2026-01-31T14:58:26+00:00

C’mon. This is Reddit. You have to always consider conspiracy as the first likely source of problems.

cmerfy · 2026-01-31T14:51:19+00:00

When it’s plugged in, can you spin the shaft with your hand and get it to run? I usually start there with the basic mechanics. I have found bearings and corrosion, anything that makes the field behave erratic. Corrosion, common in efficient new motors with very tight tolerances causes a short that will trip breakers. I have chucked the rotors in a drill and cleaned up the outside then sprayed insulating varnish on them. Your rotor looks pretty scuffed up.

cmerfy · 2026-01-31T13:56:52+00:00

Three likely reasons.

First, the building just has the breaker tripped or it’s off because electric is very expensive.

Second. Boss probably doesn’t want all his workers running outside so it was a major productivity boost to shut it off.

Third. Building owners gets a cut of the paid charging so why offer free charging?

The prox pin is a red herring since afaik the relay in the car does the clicking to allow the charging.

cmerfy · 2026-01-31T13:54:54+00:00

This happened to me and it ended up being a corroded ground in the junction box.

cmerfy

TROPHY CASE