Your recent repair? 2013 - 2020

[NateW]

Goofiness at the crank position sensor (speed sensor?) is a common no-start condition with Bosch engine management systems. An easy fix, if you know what to look for -- which is where the knowhow comes in.

I'm in the middle of an a/c repair on my Dodge (Mercedes) Sprinter, so heavily into DiY work on German vehicles. I'm about 75% done with the fix and will add to this thread when I'm sure I've succeeded (otherwise, fuggedaboutit).

Looking forward to reading about it. You probably know this, but if the A/C system has been discharged, or leaked down and is being recharged as part of your repair, replace the receiver-drier and pull a good vacuum on the system to get all the air and moisture out, before weighing in the correct refrigerant charge.

 

[grasshopper]

Noticed the 20+ year old Kenmore refrigerator temperature had gone up a few degrees the past couple of days. Pulled everything out of the freezer and yeah the defroster heater burned out so the coils were all iced up. Lucky me had ordered a spare 4 years ago when it had gone out before. Seems to be working fine now, ordered a spare on Ebay $10.60 free shipping for the next time.

 

[Time2]

Noticed the 20+ year old Kenmore refrigerator temperature had gone up a few degrees the past couple of days. Pulled everything out of the freezer and yeah the defroster heater burned out so the coils were all iced up. Lucky me had ordered a spare 4 years ago when it had gone out before. Seems to be working fine now, ordered a spare on Ebay $10.60 free shipping for the next time.

Shhh! not so loud, I replaced mine about 10 years ago, I don't want to jink it.
PS, if I ordered an extra 4 years ago, I wouldn't remember I ordered.

 

[grasshopper]

Shhh! not so loud, I replaced mine about 10 years ago, I don't want to jink it.
PS, if I ordered an extra 4 years ago, I wouldn't remember I ordered.

I have been averaging one every 4 years, just happy this retiree is on the ball enough to do the repair. 100 miles one way to the nearest HD or Lowes.

 

[6miths]

Cottage time so decided to upgrade the outside water line from the lake. Put a hose bib just upstream of the foot valve and another just above the pump so the whole thing would be easier to prime. Replaced the 1" line from lake to pump with green stripe. Cleaned the foot valve internals. Was very easy to prime with the new additions. Hopefully going forward will be the same.

 

[aja8888]

Noticed the 20+ year old Kenmore refrigerator temperature had gone up a few degrees the past couple of days. Pulled everything out of the freezer and yeah the defroster heater burned out so the coils were all iced up. Lucky me had ordered a spare 4 years ago when it had gone out before. Seems to be working fine now, ordered a spare on Ebay $10.60 free shipping for the next time.

I replaced out defrost heater and thermostat in the fridge last year. DW was screaming for a NEW fridge, but for $60 in parts, I saved a thousand.

I had to buy the parts locally in a panic at a supply house. eBay soundslike a source if I have to do this fix again.

 

[ls99]

An easy one.
Washing machine stopped. Display said: not draining.
Open door covering fileter housing. Get bucket. Unscrew filter, watch really dirty water coming out into bucket and some on the floor. Wash filter, remove some crud covering fileter. Reinstall. Dehumidifier already running, will take care of what I did not mop up.
All is well.

 

[jazz4cash]

This job started off with fixing a leak under the patio door.....builder only caulked halfway under the doorsill. I discovered silicone caulk has an expiration day (no matter how cleverly I have sealed the tube)... and it mushroomed into this...

 

[John Galt III]

This job started off with fixing a leak under the patio door.....builder only caulked halfway under the doorsill. I discovered silicone caulk has an expiration day (no matter how cleverly I have sealed the tube)... and it mushroomed into this...

Jazz4cash, your image didn't load. What happened with the caulking and the door sill?

 

[jazz4cash]

Jazz4cash, your image didn't load. What happened with the caulking and the door sill?

Hmm....the image attachment did not go smoothly, but I am looking at the before and after shots on my screen.

The builder only caulked 1/2 of the door sill. It's like they ran out of caulk and forgot to return to finish. It leaked on day one and their fix-it guy caulked the interior which worked for awhile. A while back we had a paver patio installed by a handyman and I thought he made the problem worse with the slope of the patio, so I set out to adjust the pitch and reseal the sill. I tried sealing it with some well-preserved silicone caulk that was two years past expiration. I never knew it expired. I applied a nice smooth bead and tooled it into place but 24 hours later it wasn't cured and not even tacky.

 

[mountainsoft]

The builder only caulked 1/2 of the door sill. It's like they ran out of caulk and forgot to return to finish. It leaked on day one

A better option is to use drainage flashing under the door sill, such as these ones from Jamsill Guard Door and Window Sill Pan Flashing.. Any moisture that finds it's way under the door frame is channeled back outside away from the building structure.

Also, I prefer composite door frames over wood for any door that will be exposed to weather. Every wood door frame I've seen tends to wick moisture from the bottom, rotting the lower part of the frame near the sill. No amount of caulking helps with this.

If the door is protected by a porch roof or other covering, neither of these is likely to be an issue.

 

[Walt34]

DW woke me this morning with those words that every guy hates to hear: "Dear, there's water leaking in the basement". Note that they never ever state whether it's a puddle like a small puppy would leave or is it chest deep and rising.

Turns out this was about the size of what a small puppy would leave and from the location I knew from past experience exactly what and where it was - the water line to the ice maker in the refrigerator. So I pull it out from the wall and there is indeed water on the floor and it's leaking into the basement. But both ends of the connection are bone dry!??

So I get behind there and sit down (I'm now 70 and don't bend quite as easily as I used to so this takes some effort) and I wondering where the water is coming from and then I notice that my belly is wet. The water line has a pinhole leak in it that you can't even see without shining a light right on it, and it's aimed right where I'm sitting.

A short trip to Lowes for the water line and fittings and the fix and I'm done. This was a different section of the water line though. The first time it was the line from the solenoid valve to the ice maker. This time it was the line from the water pipe to the solenoid valve. This refrigerator is only a bit over 17 years old.

They just don't make water lines like they used to.

 

[Sunset]

I just replaced our sump pump and the 1-way valve on the discharge pipe.
All of this was prompted by my noticing the sump pump hole was filled with about 9 inches of sludge around the sides that inclined down to the pump.

Basically the pump kept a small area clear by pumping out the sludge as it accumulated.

Note to self: Check the sump pump more often than once every 17 years !!

I had to wait nervously for dry spell over a few months.

I noticed that the 1-way valve was also broken, looked like it was leaking a bit and was allowing the water to flow backwards once the pump shut off.

1. Unplugged the old one
2. took off all the clamps,
3. Moved the top high up the piping, holding it in place with a clamp.
4. Saw the clever way 1-way valves are put together, made sure mine pointed the correct way.
5. Bailed out the sump pump hole and all the sludge.
6. cut my new pipe and connector to the new pump
7. Installed everything, tightened all the gear clamps.
8. Realized the top (solid metal) wouldn't go back down, so had to take pipes apart, put the top down and reinstall it all again.
9. filled the hole with some water (had to use containers as no hose).
10. plugged in the pump.
11. Continued filling the hole, and watched the pump go on quietly and empty the hole

 

[51notout]

Your recent repair?

A/C stopped around midnight last night. Didn’t sleep well in 80F house.

Took a look this morning and nudged the fan blade with a thin stick. The fan started up. That indicated that the start/run capacitor was failing. Stopped by the local supply company and picked a new one up for $25 including tax. Five minutes to disassemble and anther 5 to install and reassemble. Switched the fuses and outside breaker back on and it work like a charm. Even ran quieter.

Saved a call out fee and the time waiting. A productive day [emoji3]

Edit to add: I was careful to discharge the old capacitor as it can give a powerful shock. (Used a rubber handled screwdriver across the terminals. C to Fan and C to Herm)

 

[Chuckanut]

I replaced a seal in my toilet tank.

It's the first time I have done this with the new design that uses a cylinder that drops down and seals the tank drain. My biggest issue was that the part of the assembly that is supposed to twist off is made of rather flimsy plastic and it took a lot of force to get it to turn 90 degrees so I could remove it. I was afraid I would break the thing off! I used a bit of back and forth force and it finally freed up. The rest of the replacement was a piece of cake. No more ongoing toilet leaks.

 

[Boho]

A/C stopped around midnight last night. Didn’t sleep well in 80F house.

My AC may have the same problem. The fan blows too weak. I don't trust my skill to replace the capacitor myself. The only factory authorized LG repair place near me doesn't do AC repairs "at the moment." I would have left it outside my door for them but they didn't even say that bringing it to them is an option. So now I'm deciding whether to call a non-authorized place. I probably will.

 

[pdxgal]

Don't remember if I already replied, so here goes.... Last year the water temp selector knob on my washing machine cracked, wouldn't stay on the spindle to turn. Had to change the water temp w/ needle nose pliers. A replacement knob was $20! So I found some really fine wire, wrapped it tight around the knob's shaft to hold the plastic tight, placed it back onto the spindle and now works like a charm. That was the most satisfaction I got all last year!

Recently my rice cooker stopped. Google suggests problem is the temp control fuse. Bought a new one for $1.60. Will try replacing this weekend. Have a similar problem with my $250 Breville countertop oven. Bought a $5 fuse for that. An enginenerd has a great blog post w/ step by step instructions on how to replace. Will give that a shot next.

 

[pdxgal]

Oh, also replaced the freezer fan motor in my MIL apt fridge. Fridge was warm, freezer cold. Fridge was only 3 years old so odd that it stopped working. Hope the new motor has fixed it for good.

 

[Sunset]

My AC may have the same problem. The fan blows too weak. I don't trust my skill to replace the capacitor myself. The only factory authorized LG repair place near me doesn't do AC repairs "at the moment." I would have left it outside my door for them but they didn't even say that bringing it to them is an option. So now I'm deciding whether to call a non-authorized place. I probably will.

How do you leave your A/C outside the door ?

If it's a window one, wouldn't it be cheaper to buy a new one ?

 

[Boho]

How do you leave your A/C outside the door ?

If it's a window one, wouldn't it be cheaper to buy a new one ?

It's a 13,200 BTU in-wall/sleeve AC. They cost about $700. I was considering getting a smaller one for the bedroom and not repairing that living room one (I used to keep it on all night and have a fan blow the cool air into my bedroom. I don't get an electric bill). But I'm charged monthly for each AC...I forgot how much but I remember it seeming like too much.

So, I'd make a ramp and slide the AC onto a dolly to leave it outside.

 

[REWahoo]

It's a 13,200 BTU in-wall/sleeve AC.

The "official" name is packaged terminal air conditioner (PTAC).

 

[grasshopper]

Oh, also replaced the freezer fan motor in my MIL apt fridge. Fridge was warm, freezer cold. Fridge was only 3 years old so odd that it stopped working. Hope the new motor has fixed it for good.

I did the freezer fan about 4 years ago, can't believe how much quieter the fridge is.

 

[John Galt III]

A/C stopped around midnight last night. Didn’t sleep well in 80F house.

Took a look this morning and nudged the fan blade with a thin stick. The fan started up. That indicated that the start/run capacitor was failing. Stopped by the local supply company and picked a new one up for $25 including tax. Five minutes to disassemble and anther 5 to install and reassemble. Switched the fuses and outside breaker back on and it work like a charm. Even ran quieter.

Saved a call out fee and the time waiting. A productive day [emoji3]

Edit to add: I was careful to discharge the old capacitor as it can give a powerful shock. (Used a rubber handled screwdriver across the terminals. C to Fan and C to Herm)

Hey, 51notout, thanks for the tip about nudging the fan blade to see if it starts spinning. I did not know that!

 

[travelover]

Hey, 51notout, thanks for the tip about nudging the fan blade to see if it starts spinning. I did not know that!

This guy has excellent DIY HVAC videos.

 

[Ronstar]

Rip out Murphy bed, convert Former bed space to cabinet with 3 new doors.