DIY Thread

I would be rewiring that 1940's stuff. I redid my grandfather's old house that I lived in from 1995-2001. I decided to do so when I was installing a ceiling fan prior to moving in and while attempting to join the ceiling fan wiring to the existing wiring with a wire nut, the old stuff disintegrated in my hand. I'm a state certified firefighter as well. I cringed when I saw that. Don't screw around with old brittle wiring.

 

About half of it has been replaced. I didn't expect to see any yesterday.

It is not yet in disintegration stage, but I don't screw with it under normal circumstances because the insulation around the wires cracks pretty easily, and I don't want to run the risk of a short.

I might pull some romex wire to replace this one, but it won't be stapled in the wall, and that is generally a code enforcement no-no. And romex, over time, isn't that much better...

 

Word on the street (mi padre is a former licensed electrician) is that I have a switched neutral. He said I need to test it with the multimeter, using the ground to dissipate the hot wire charge. So, I bought some alligator clip leads because... [uck fay] that... so when it isn't 200 degrees in my attic, I'll see if that is the case. He said I might also be getting some low voltage through the ground, but I don't think that is the case, since the old wire doesn't have a ground, and I tape ball'd the hell out of the wire.

 

Yeah. Just be careful, bro. I disturbed the old wiring as little as possible. I definitely didn't remove it. It was old braided asbestos wiring. Looked like this:

 

That is K and T wire. Did you have the knobs and tubes, or just the wires?

 

No knobs or tubes. Seen them before, though.

 

When restraining a fence, do i need to strip the old stain of? Or, how important is it that i do so? I really don't want to do this.

 

Let me also stress that all i care about is how this looks for prospective home buyers.

 

Fence Staining Repair and Restoration

 

So the 4x4's on my kids playground area retaining wall are starting to become splintered and jagged. I'm guessing the dipshits that originally put it in used untreated lumber. What's the best way to fix this?

Can I plane down the jaggedness then seal it off somehow? Or am I going to have to rip it out and use ground contact wood? Not sure if I'm explaining the problem correctly, so I can take pictures later if it'll help.

 

If it isn't treated lumber, no amount of sealant is going to save it. How old is it? Is it rotting or just losing some splintery bits?

 

Not positive; it was there when we bought the house in 2015, but I'd guess ~7 years. Not rotting at all, just starting to peel. Almost like someone did take a plane to it and quit halfway through a bunch of times. Then took a hatchet to the part peeling up to make sure it was good and dangerous.

 

Then it isn't raw wood, it is pressure treated. Raw wood with dirt behind it would probably be shredded by now, especially if it is pine (which it most likely is).

 

How long are the 4x4's? How many are there and are they stacked more than one high?

 

This is exactly what I did btw. Memories. . .

 

I must have been high when I wrote that

 

Guestimation, 8 footers. I believe 4 high in the back down to 1 in the front. Need to run out and check to be sure.

 

Are only the top ones splintering?

 

Zehr how much you billing IV?

 

This vinyl plank stuff looks good. Cheap but fairly easy to put down. Use a small pad under it.
Before basement with awful yellow walls and old carpet to paint and vinyl plank. Good, quick, cheap way to make a room look better