Your recent repair? - 2021 to ?

[ERD50]

^^^^ Some dealers can be pretty shady.

Many years ago, our neighbor was a mechanic, and he told me how when he worked at a small used car dealer, one time a car came in that ran fine, but the oil light was on.
They cut the wire to the light.
A young teenager bought the car as his first car... A year later he came back saying the car was great !
Guess it was just the pressure switch.

Most cars go through a little initialization, where they light up every light on the dash. The intention (I assume) is so you can check for a burned out bulb. But there are so many now, that w/o a guide and time to look for each, the odds of noticing one missing, even if you tried, would be slim.

My 2017 Buick does a start up 'dance' of the speedometer and tach, running them from zero to full range and back down, I guess also to give some visual indication that they are working. Scared the cr@p out of me the first time, thinking for a split second that the engine was revving to max, and am I in gear? Took me a while to get used to that, it's still a bit unnerving.

-ERD50

 

[jazz4cash]

Most cars go through a little initialization, where they light up every light on the dash. The intention (I assume) is so you can check for a burned out bulb. But there are so many now, that w/o a guide and time to look for each, the odds of noticing one missing, even if you tried, would be slim.



My 2017 Buick does a start up 'dance' of the speedometer and tach, running them from zero to full range and back down, I guess also to give some visual indication that they are working. Scared the cr@p out of me the first time, thinking for a split second that the engine was revving to max, and am I in gear? Took me a while to get used to that, it's still a bit unnerving.



-ERD50

Yes that is the intention and it was sometimes referred to as a bulb check. I’ve never encountered a burned out bulb, though. Generally key on/engine off illuminates the bulb and a valid sensor signal turns it off. Of course now days its likely controlled via computer diagnostics.

 

[travelover]

If you consider yourself pretty handy, watch a couple of this gal's videos.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNwBSVzAmfDaH2G04bA0jJQ

 

[Souschef]

Toothpaste!!

We have moved to a new apartment, and DW has me hanging pictures and stuff all over. One of the new hangings told about using toothpaste on the picture hanger to mark where the nail goes. DUH!!
I never thought of it, and it makes the job so much easier.

 

[jollystomper]

I had to replace a faucet set for one of our bathrooms. but at least the faucet company did me right .

One of our Delta faucets installed about 6 years ago started a very slow drip that eventually evolved into a steady leak. The cold water faucet was the culprit. I would change the cartridge and it would slow the drip down, and as such we did not notice it much it made no sound, so out of sight, out of mind ). But probably over the last 12-15 months changing cartridges, made little difference. I never had issues with fixing leaks by replacing a faucet washer and/or cartridge, why not now?)

I finally got our plumber involved. He tried several cartridges and could not fix it either. He then took a closer look at the water supply hole in the faucet set, and found that it was actually irregular. Over time, the water kept wearing way at it and managed to shape it so that a washer could not stop the water flow when the faucet was turned off.

The faucet model has been discontinued, I did not have receipts (just the original box), and a faucet seat is not an orderable part. I emailed Delta Faucet customer service, explained the situation, along with pictures, and asked even though the set was discontinued, might they still have a faucet seat they could send me. To my surprise, the responded the next day, very apologetic about the situation, and asked me to provide some additional information and send them a few more pictures of the installation, which I did.

Long story short, less than a week after contacting them they mailed me a complete new faucet set, the current model that replaced our discontinued model. I removed the old set and installed the new set without issue last night (either these things are getting easier to install, or I am getting better at it ).

With this kind of customer service, I am glad to have Delta fixtures in all of our bathrooms and kitchen .

 

[Walt34]

DW pointed out that one of the screens on the back porch was torn down at the bottom where it was hard to see. But it was admitting the occasional bug, and that was enough for her to notice. It's an easy fix so I went downstairs to make sure I had all the stuff needed, and for once I did. Still had an hour of daylight left so I figured now was as good a time as any.

Now excuse me while I check on Home Depot, Lowes, and Amazon to see who has the best price on more screen material since I just used the last roll.

 

[sengsational]

Now excuse me while I check on Home Depot, Lowes, and Amazon to see who has the best price on more screen material since I just used the last roll.

Doing screens is one of those things I keep putting off. I've done a few (used up my stock of supplies), but lack motivation on continuation. It's something that, once I get going on it, is kind of satisfying, but the thought of doing it doesn't get me off the couch.

My project was to prevent kitchen precipitation.

I bought a 24VAC water sensor with a double throw relay. I had to dig deep into the furnace to to where the transformer fed the circuit board. I cut that and ran it thru the water sensor. So normally, the connection is made and the HVAC operates normally. In the case of water, it flips the power off for the furnace and powers a little 24VAC alarm. Kind of a fun project.

Both my A/C and my whole house humidifier have, at times, caused raining in the kitchen, despite the drip pan. Long stories behind the drips, but because of the way this thing was installed, the backup solution needed to be beefed up.

 

[travelover]

.........

My project was to prevent kitchen precipitation.

I bought a 24VAC water sensor with a double throw relay. I had to dig deep into the furnace to to where the transformer fed the circuit board. I cut that and ran it thru the water sensor. So normally, the connection is made and the HVAC operates normally. In the case of water, it flips the power off for the furnace and powers a little 24VAC alarm. Kind of a fun project.

Both my A/C and my whole house humidifier have, at times, caused raining in the kitchen, despite the drip pan. Long stories behind the drips, but because of the way this thing was installed, the backup solution needed to be beefed up.

I'm a little slow this AM. Why does the HVAC make the kitchen rain?

 

[ERD50]

I'm a little slow this AM. Why does the HVAC make the kitchen rain?

It's now PM here, coffee pot has been emptied, and I still don't get it either.

-ERD50

 

[sengsational]

It's now PM here, coffee pot has been emptied, and I still don't get it either

My weak attempt at humor. If the main condensate line gets plugged up and it starts dripping in the pan AND the pan drain / backup drain leaks, it drips out of the kitchen ceiling. Or if the humidifier decides to send a rivulet out of the device, which it does occasionally, same thing. I've tried fixing the pan and backup drain, but to really do it would require lifting the furnace, and I'm not going there.

 

[Sunset]

I'm a little slow this AM. Why does the HVAC make the kitchen rain?

I'm guessing it's because they are in the attic of the house.

 

[Walt34]

I'm guessing it's because they are in the attic of the house.

Yup, that's it.

A plumber once explained to me everything there was to know about plumbing in one sentence:

"Hot on the left, cold on the right, and "stuff" don't flow uphill."

 

[NW-Bound]

Not a repair, but a home improvement: I bought a toilet at Costco yesterday, and installed it today.

All the talk about water shortages in the West made me feel guilty about still having the original toilets in this 36-year-old home. They use perhaps 4-5 gal per flush. The new ones of course use much less, from 1.28 to 1.6 gal per flush.

So, one down, and two more toilets to change out.

 

[zinger1457]

Not a repair, but a home improvement: I bought a toilet at Costco yesterday, and installed it today.

All the talk about water shortages in the West made me feel guilty about still having the original toilets in this 36-year-old home. They use perhaps 4-5 gal per flush. The new ones of course use much less, from 1.28 to 1.6 gal per flush.

So, one down, and two more toilets to change out.

Check with your local city/county, many are offering rebates to get rid of your old toilets. I replaced two of my toilets last year and got $100 for each of them from the county.

 

[NW-Bound]

Check with your local city/county, many are offering rebates to get rid of your old toilets. I replaced two of my toilets last year and got $100 for each of them from the county.

Thanks! Will do.

PS. The local government considered a $75 rebate last year, but decided against it. So, no money for me.

 

[MC Rider]

Water heater started leaking from the drain valve, late night of course. The thing is not even a year and a half old. Why the drain valve is made of plastic who knows. Piece of junk. The company that installed it was not much help beyond saying turn off the water valve on it. Ended up replacing it with a brass valve. It was easy to do and cheap.

 

[mountainsoft]

We had to use the shower in our guest bath a couple days ago and realized there was a low flow of water coming out of the shower head. I soaked it in vinegar and cleaned it as best as possible but still no flow. So I decided to replace the Moen 1222 shower cartridge ($55 yikes).

I have replaced these in our other showers a few times, but have never replaced the one in the guest bath. I thought it would be a quick 15 minute job but it turned into a 2 hour nightmare. The cartridge was really stuck in the valve body. The little plastic removal tool broke. So I switched to a combination of needle nose pliers, vice grips, and other tools but the cartridge just fell apart. No matter what I did it wouldn't come out. I kept breaking pieces off inside the valve body, being careful not to scratch the brass valve. Eventually I had to partially cut through the remaining plastic with a hacksaw blade in order to break out the final remaining pieces. One cartridge = 100 small pieces and a big mess.

Once I finally got it out I polished up the inside of the valve body with 1000 grit sandpaper, lubed everything up with plumbers grease and installed the new valve body. Everything went together fine, no leaks.

Unfortunately, the shower head still has very low flow. Grrr... So, I have a new shower head on order.

Our fixtures are all "antique brass" which apparently is "soooo... 1990's" and is almost impossible to find today. It's also hard to find a regular shower head and not one of those dinner plate sized rain showers. Sheesh.

 

[zinger1457]

^^^ They do sell a metal cartridge removal tool, I ended up buying one years ago when I tried to remove a Moen cartridge that wouldn't budge, think I paid around $12 for it, came out easily with the tool. I have used it a couple times since so it was worth it.

 

[mountainsoft]

They do sell a metal cartridge removal tool, I ended up buying one years ago when I tried to remove a Moen cartridge that wouldn't budge, think I paid around $12 for it, came out easily with the tool. I have used it a couple times since so it was worth it.

Yeah, that tool costs around $25 now, but I don't think it would have helped much. That tool basically threads into the stem and pulls against the valve body.

Unfortunately, my stem pulled out of the cartridge (broke off about halfway inside the cartridge) leaving all the bits and pieces inside the valve body. Even when there was nothing left of the cartridge except the outer plastic shell, it refused to come out in one piece.

 

[John Galt III]

Water heater started leaking from the drain valve, late night of course. The thing is not even a year and a half old. Why the drain valve is made of plastic who knows. Piece of junk. The company that installed it was not much help beyond saying turn off the water valve on it. Ended up replacing it with a brass valve. It was easy to do and cheap.

I have the same problem with my water heater. It leaked from day 1, but only when it is refilling. The heating up and expanding of the fresh water must be causing the leak. Also a dumb plastic valve. I had convinced myself to replace it with a metal valve sometime, but I think I will leave the dumb plastic valve in since it is acting as a sort of pressure release valve. Less pressure, less chance for a leak in other places to start. It stops leaking after an hour or so. I just keep a bucket under it, and it just evaporates. Once in a while I dump it out, anyway. Water heaters (some?) now come with an expansion tank, but this one doesn't have one. I think the purpose of the expansion tank is to make the heater last longer. Plus allows them to use thinner and cheaper metal? Just guessing.

 

[John Galt III]

Water heater started leaking from the drain valve, late night of course. The thing is not even a year and a half old. Why the drain valve is made of plastic who knows. Piece of junk. The company that installed it was not much help beyond saying turn off the water valve on it. Ended up replacing it with a brass valve. It was easy to do and cheap.

MC Rider, did you have to drain the tank? Or were you able to just shut off the incoming water, and remove the plastic valve without much water flowing out? Thx.

 

[ERD50]

... Water heaters (some?) now come with an expansion tank, but this one doesn't have one. I think the purpose of the expansion tank is to make the heater last longer. Plus allows them to use thinner and cheaper metal? Just guessing.

I'm not familiar with any built in expansion tanks, but it's a simple add on.

You just tap into the line, and the tank has enough air (preferably in a bladder so the air doesn't get absorbed by the water over time) to absorb the pressure changes.

Most (many?) municipalities require a check valve on the water supply coming into your home. So when your tank fills with cold water, and heats it, it expands, and with no place to go, the pressure can build up very high.

-ERD50

 

[MC Rider]

MC Rider, did you have to drain the tank? Or were you able to just shut off the incoming water, and remove the plastic valve without much water flowing out? Thx.

The instructions said to drain the tank to replace the drain valve. I maybe could have skipped draining it. While trying to open the plastic valve to drain the whole thing came off and very little water escaped. I put it back on and attached the hose. Water still did not want to drain more than a tiny bit until I opened the pressure relief valve up top. Then it took over half an hour to drain. And yes, I did open a hot water faucet inside the house.

 

[MC Rider]

For todays fun replaced a Ball Rod Assembly, which lifts the drain plug in a bath sink when you move the lever. The end that goes into the drain and lifts the plug had rusted completely away. $16 seemed steep for a small part. And it's a real pita working on stuff under the sink. But I guess a plumber or handyman would probably charge $100 or more just to show up.

 

[finnski1]

Yesterday repaired leaking bath faucet. New cartridge did the trick. $16.98.
Also rebuilt the microwave cabinet assembly in the camper which took a beating on our just completed 8800 mile road trip. Two repairs in one day, so I took today off.