Random Thoughts - Part Deux [NO POLITICS]

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by soundman98

new houses aren't all that much better sometimes. i've worked on a few new houses, mostly one-off custom stuff, never built my own--i'm happier rehabbing an old house with a good structure. the maintenance is a pain in old houses, finding good contractors and good materials are the pain in new houses. lately, i can't get better odds than about 1 of 25 light fixtures to not be broken in some way. many times those are custom-ordered fixtures. led fixtures are somewhat worse, as there's 2 additional failure modes in the led and the led driver, besides bad mounting hardware, fixture frame damage, and broken glass. i've never had a job so far that hasn't had at least 1 ad custom-ordered 3-week-lead-time fixture bad. sometimes i can cover it over with leftover materials i hoard on the truck, other times i can't.

expect it to go over the expected time frame.

the first hardest part is finding a contractor that has their ducks in rows. there's not many that don't shoot most of it from the hip. the second hardest part is making the blueprints and getting all the idea's you want into a scaled down blueprint-- many people struggle with blueprint scale. a lot get idea's from home shows, and attempt to work design details into rooms that aren't the same scale as the idea.

and if you're doing a house with a basement, leave the basement ceiling as a drop ceiling. makes it so much easier/cheaper when you decide to change things on the main floor after realizing certain things don't work the way you want them to.

How would someone find a contractor with a row of metaphorical ducks?

Also, that's a great plus for a drop ceiling. I'm pretty sure my house was wired and rewired by a chimpanzee with a severe case of stupid, and figuring that all out makes me want to burn things. With fire.

[soundman98]

Best bet is to ask around. Good contractors info gets passed around from a friend of a friend, with little public advertising.

I hate wiring jobs like that. I genuinely don't know how there's not more global electrical fires than there already is...

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Spuds

But you did it twice...

Yep, the first one I watched almost every nail driven. I about drove the contractor and the subs nuts.

With the second house, I stopped by after the foundation was laid to make sure it was on plan and in the proper place on the parcel. Then I stopped by after it was framed to make sure the rooms were in the right place. I forced myself NOT to go back until the certificate of occupancy was issued.

My third house was newly built, but never lived in. So, I just had a home inspection and moved in.

My other houses were older, so I just updated them after moving in.

As a real estate broker, I represented several clients in purchasing land on which to build a house (nope, I couldn't convince them ALL not to do that - ). With those clients, I made it clear to them that our broker/client relationship ENDED when the deed to the property (land) was transferred and recorded. Even though my son-in-law builds houses, I would tell my clients that I DO NOT KNOW ANYBODY THAT BUILDS HOUSES - period.

They were "fun" experiences, but I just choose to not have any more of that kind of "fun".



humfrz

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by soundman98

Best bet is to ask around. Good contractors info gets passed around from a friend of a friend, with little public advertising.

I hate wiring jobs like that. I genuinely don't know how there's not more global electrical fires than there already is...

Speaking of which, any idea what would cause a socket's hot wire to be 120V over ground with the adjacent neutral at 110V over ground with 10V between them? Not throwing a breaker or burning the house down (yet) so there's probably little to no current, but I'm pretty sure it's wired to a triggered GFCI plug on the other side of my house that I can't seem to reset (tracing random wires through my attic). Oh, and the socket in question used to work.

[Sapphireho]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Speaking of which, any idea what would cause a socket's hot wire to be 120V over ground with the adjacent neutral at 110V over ground with 10V between them? Not throwing a breaker or burning the house down (yet) so there's probably little to no current, but I'm pretty sure it's wired to a triggered GFCI plug on the other side of my house that I can't seem to reset (tracing random wires through my attic). Oh, and the socket in question used to work.

No, but I know you need an electriction.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Sapphireho

No, but I know you need an electriction.

So, Sapphireho, what is your Realtor's latest strategy for getting your house sold?


humfrz

[EAGLE5]

Originally Posted by soundman98

i'm to pasty to survive very long in mexico.

I'm super white, but I tan just fine.

Originally Posted by humfrz

You mean like around Rosarito? Not to be a Debbie Downer, but you may wish to jump on google earth and look around the area after you get a half block off the ocean. Too bad GE can't capture the smell

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...alifornia.html

Looks pretty amazing, actually. Like any region, there are the good and bad parts. Have you been to that particular place?

Originally Posted by soundman98

At least half the people I've done a new houses for say the same thing. And then they're building an addition or remodeling half the house a few years later.

Being part of creating something from scratch and ordering people to make it is somewhat of an addiction. Sorta like tattooing- some might hate the process, but love the end result.

My aunt and uncle are addicts, but they can afford it. I haven't seen their most recent house on beachfront acreage on the Big Island.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by jsimon7777

I'm super white, but I tan just fine.



https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Re...alifornia.html

Looks pretty amazing, actually. Like any region, there are the good and bad parts. Have you been to that particular place?



My aunt and uncle are addicts, but they can afford it. I haven't seen their most recent house on beachfront acreage on the Big Island.

I haven't been to that resort, but I have been in that area. I remember me and my buddy walking through an open air and fly, meat market one hot afternoon in Rosarito. I had a pretty strong stomach, but I had to stick my head in a large basket of flowers to take a breath in order to get back up wind and out of there before gagging.

If I were going to spend several months in Baja California, I'd head on down to Cabo San Lucas. There is more to do and the fishing is better.

Wanna see some pictures of the last time I spent two weeks there?

Yep, a sleepy little fishing village.

The dirt strip where we landed the company plane (a queen air something). An overview. Our hotel (The Hacienda).

I wonder if it's changed much since the 1960s -


humfrz

[soundman98]

Originally Posted by Spuds

Speaking of which, any idea what would cause a socket's hot wire to be 120V over ground with the adjacent neutral at 110V over ground with 10V between them? Not throwing a breaker or burning the house down (yet) so there's probably little to no current, but I'm pretty sure it's wired to a triggered GFCI plug on the other side of my house that I can't seem to reset (tracing random wires through my attic). Oh, and the socket in question used to work.

And what is the voltage between hot and neutral? O or 10v?. Typically that means there's a loose neutral connection somewhere between the outlet and the panel. Usually something is plugged in and jumpering the hot to neutral downstream of the problem. Pull some plugs, and suddenly the problem goes away from the perspective of a no draw item like a volt meter, but reappears once you plug a current drawing item in.

It could also be a defective gfi if you can't get that to trip/reset, or it's possible the wires were connected incorrectly on the gfi and the gfi functionality is fine.

The first things i check in that situation is behind the problem outlet for a loose splice, then i go to the panel, shut down the circuit, and check the circuits connections in the panel- a lot of guys limp-wrist connections(when i check the one connection, i always torque every screw in the panel, many times either they're left loose, or thermal cycling has loosened them), so a healthy amount of those times are fixed in those 2 areas. After that, it's a matter of leaving the circuit off and checking every single connection from one side to the other.

Those are the main culprits, but there's plenty of other remote culprits like a damaged wire, or a wire stretched too tight that broke over time

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by soundman98

And what is the voltage between hot and neutral? O or 10v?. Typically that means there's a loose neutral connection somewhere between the outlet and the panel. Usually something is plugged in and jumpering the hot to neutral downstream of the problem. Pull some plugs, and suddenly the problem goes away from the perspective of a no draw item like a volt meter, but reappears once you plug a current drawing item in.

It could also be a defective gfi if you can't get that to trip/reset, or it's possible the wires were connected incorrectly on the gfi and the gfi functionality is fine.

The first things i check in that situation is behind the problem outlet for a loose splice, then i go to the panel, shut down the circuit, and check the circuits connections in the panel- a lot of guys limp-wrist connections, so a healthy amount of those times are fixed in those 2 areas. After that, it's a matter of leaving the circuit off and checking every single connection from one side to the other.

Those are the main culprits, but there's plenty of other remote culprits like a damaged wire, or a wire stretched too tight that broke over time

Yeah, there is 10V measured between hot and neutral.

So the order goes panel - loose neutral - problem plug and some appliance on a different plug. Where the appliance is essentially charging the neutral because current has difficulty flowing through the loose neutral?

And a faulty GFCI could be the loose neutral, the bridge, or both?

Why leave the power on when checking for a loose splice?

[Dadhawk]

Interesting birthday list today on the forum front page...

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

Interesting birthday list today on the forum front page...

Apparently spam bots have birthdays!

[Clutch Dog]

Originally Posted by soundman98

i've been seeing new oem trunk lids for around $550-600 on fleabay. if you've got a line on one for $350, i'll buy by tomorrow.

2017-2018 wing 57509CA1709P retails for 371 unpainted from subaru parts.com
I have a black wingless in LA for 150. the owner is very hard to get ahold of

2015-16 wing 57509CA0319P
57509CA0209P for wingless

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Clutch Dog

2017-2018 wing 57509CA1709P retails for 371 unpainted from subaru parts.com
I have a black wingless in LA for 150. the owner is very hard to get ahold of

2015-16 wing 57509CA0319P
57509CA0209P for wingless

Have you tried any wrecking yards? Do you even have local wrecking yards there?