HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mwilson@ncratl.AtlantaGA.NCR.COM (Mark Wilson)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
Subject: A question about gravel and french drains.
Date: 1 Oct 92 14:54:50 GMT
Organization: NCR Engineering and Manufacturing Atlanta -- Atlanta, GA

What is the purpose of using gravel in a french drain.  I am in the process
of installing a french drain on my house.  It is a lot of work so I want to
do it right the first time.  But I also don't have a lot of money.

Also, because of some concrete that was poured near the driveway, I will have
to leave the drain pipe about 6 inches above the bottom of the floor of the
garage.  Will this cause a problem?  I could cut a notch in the offending
concrete, it won't affect anything else, but this would be a lot of work
plus renting some tools that I don't have.

Very tired neophyte would appreciate some advice.

-- 
Mark
My opinions are mine, all mine.  Unless someone else claims them first.
Mark.Wilson@AtlantaGA.NCR.com
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
Subject: Re: Replacing bad heating element in hw heater
From: gary@cdthq.UUCP (Gary Heston)
Date: Mon, 05 Oct 92 18:50:21 CDT
Organization: Garys' Home for Obsolete Computers

nall@sun8.scri.fsu.edu (John Nall) writes:

> Do any of you do-it-yourselfers happen to know whether or not
> it is feasible to conemplate replacing a bad heating coil in a hot
> water heater?  (Feasible in the sense that the old one can be
> taken out, a replacement can easily be purchased, and this
> sort of thing occurs on a routine basis).

In an electric water heater? Piece of cake. Turn off power, drain the 
heater, disconnect the electrical connection, remove the mounting screws,
pull the old element, clean the mounting area, mount new element as per
instructions on the box, reconnect, refill, and power it up. It will
probably take less time to actually change the element than to drain
the tank.


Gary Heston, at home....
gary@cdthq.uucp
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: patter@dasher.uucp (24224-guthrie)
Subject: Re: Electric Drill Recommendation
Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ
Distribution: na
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 92 18:38:30 GMT

In article <1889@shaman.wv.tek.com> alanj@endeavor18.tek.com (Alan Jeddeloh) writes:

<request for drill motor recommendations deleted>

>Try Milwalkee, Skill, Makita, or Ryobi (or *possibly* B&D "Professional") if
>you want a tool that will last.

If you opt for Skil, you should be aware that they make several quality
levels of tool. My experience with their commercial quality line is
that it's a very good tool. I've used worm drive Skil saws that were
made in the 40s and still ran fine, being used commercially the entire
time.

However, a few years ago they began to market a homeowners' line of tools.
My experience with this line (they're in the $40 price range) has convinced
me that B&D makes better quality tools for less money. In short, if it
costs much less than $100, I wouldn't buy a Skil tool.

patter@dasher.cc.bellcore.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                    |
George Patterson -  | If you always tell the truth, you never
                    | have to remember what you said.
                    |                        Samuel Clemens
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: patter@dasher.uucp (24224-guthrie)
Subject: Re: Styrofoam? Paper? Or Wood?
Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ
Date: Sat, 3 Oct 92 13:57:06 GMT

In article <4025@fcs280s.ncifcrf.gov> masuda@fcs280b.ncifcrf.gov (Michiaki Masuda) writes:

>  There are several developments in our area by various developers/builders.
>When we looked at buildings under construction, some builders were using a
>styrofoam board under the siding, some builders were using a cardboard-kind-of
>thing coated with thin aluminum foil (?), and others were using a wooden 
>chipboard.

Both of the panels you mentioned first are insulating foam. The foil serves
as a vapor barrier in the second one. It's necessary primarily because the
vapors produced by that type of foam are a health hazard. The stuff you
call "styrofoam" has an R value of less than 2 for a 3/4" thick panel.
In other words, squat.

The foil covered one has an R value of about 2.3 for a 3/8" panel. The
chipboard has effectively no insulating value. Despite the low R value,
the insulating properties are pretty important, since they cover the 2x4
framing. Normally the white foam panels are installed over a layer of
chipboard or other material.

The chipboard will add a certain amount of stiffness to the structure, but
not much.

If any of these materials is used for sheathing a house, normal practice
is to use one sheet of plywood at each corner of the walls. Alternately
cross-bracing (diagonal 2x4s) must be installed in the framing.

If the area is very windy (subject to gale force winds), the only sheathing
material to use is plywood. Elsewhere you don't see it very much these
days.

Given a choice, I'd opt for the foil covered panels in your area.

patter@dasher.cc.bellcore.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                    | If you have a tank which can move and communicate,
George Patterson -  |   but which cannot shoot, essentially what you have
                    |   is a sixty-five ton portable radio.
                    |                Fort Bragg School of Armour
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: patter@dasher.uucp (24224-guthrie)
Subject: Re: Installing deadbolts in steel doors
Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 17:55:09 GMT

In article <lcjm05INNq0i@news.bbn.com> jdelsign@BBN.COM (John Delsignore) writes:

>The doors are 1 3/4 inches thick, and it looks like there is wood
>sandwiched between two sheets of steel along the edges.  Along the
>edge of the door where the deadbolt belongs, there is some kind of
>plastic knock-out.
>
>I've got some questions:
>
>	1. What's behind the plastic?

Probably you will find a recessed section of steel which is pre-drilled
for the screws used to mount the deadbolt.

>	2. Where do I drill the holes relative to plastic knokout?

The deadbolt usually comes with a template which is used to mark the
location of the center of the holes.

>	3. How easy is it to drill the opening for the deadbolt
>	   through the steel?  Is there a special drill bit required?

Assuming you have a drill motor, it's a piece of cake. Buy a hole saw the
right size which is designed for cutting steel. Drill halfway through the
door from one side, then drill in from the other. If the edge of the door
isn't square (the door is usually made narrower on the frame side than on
the outside to make it close properly), the center of the hole on one side
should be further from the edge than that on the other.

>	4. How do you keep the drill perpendicular to the door?

I do it by eye.

>	5. What's going to go wrong?

Well, let's see. You'll buy the wrong size hole saw, then you'll break the
next one you buy. Once you finally get the hole drilled, you'll discover
that you mis-measured and the two sides don't really line up. When you
install the bolt, you won't notice that the mounting screws are threaded
to KST (Korean Standard Thread), so you'll strip out the threads in the door
and have to post for information on tap and die sets. Then you'll discover
that it's not hung quite right, so the bolt hits the edge of the striker
plate. Then........

patter@dasher.cc.bellcore.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                    | If you take a dog which is starving and feed him
George Patterson -  | and make him prosperous, that dog will not bite
                    | you. This is the primary difference between a dog
                    | and a man.             Samuel Clemens
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: rsd@sei.cmu.edu (Richard S D'Ippolito)
Subject: Re: Radon.  How serious is it?
Organization: The Software Engineering Institute
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 14:29:18 GMT


In article <1992Sep25.113520.12152@cbnews.cb.att.com>, Tom Balent writes:

|> Radon is almost a cause celebre - because it is something that affects
|> home owners directly (especially with laws now saying you have to have 
|> the house checked when you sell), and it is something that most people 
|> will gladly spend money to combat.  On the other hand lead in the air, 
|> acid rain, the depletion of the ozone layer, the greenhouse effect, and 
|> others - those are problems that are not easily attacked, and any 
|> solution to combat them will cost a lot of money.  Therefore it is hard
|> to get people to fight them, or to even care about them.   
|> 
|> Maybe we should push for stricter laws to control the radon levels in
|> houses, because once the ozone layer is gone we will be spending a lot
|> more time in them.

The EPA exposure limit is based on their best guess (no testing was ever done,
and the guess is an extrapolation down from high radiation exposure levels,
also not scientifically demonstrated to be valid) that exposure to it for a
lifetime will result in one (that's ONE) excess death from cancer.  In
otherwords, for that risk, you would have to be born in and live in your
basement 24hrs a day for 70 years!  There are more important things to be
concerned about.  The asbestos scare and ALAR were other frauds.

Regarding the others you mention, only the effects of lead are proven, but not
to the extent that we have to eliminate it from car window glass coatings and
replace all lead batteries, like some are suggesting (zero lead, period).

Scientific opinion runs three to one against global warming and NASA has
backtracked on the ozone predictions.  Acid rain has not killed fish in NY,
and the government has been quitely selling homes near the Love Canal, having
admitted that the scare was overblown and unwarranted.

Maybe we should push for less government.  By the way, Gore's book is full of
lies, bad statistics, and bad math.  The brown spotted owl exists in
California.  No, I don't want to kill it, but I don't want to be lied to by
unwashed environmentalists, either.

Regarding pollution, governments have always been and continue to be the worst
offenders.

Enjoy your home.  References upon request.

Rich





   "Please keep in mind that the ultimate goal [of hi-fi] is the
   reproduction of art, and that the invocation of science, while a neat
   parlour trick, is often unnecessary, flawed, and unreasonable."
   --  name mercifully withheld...                            rsd@sei.cmu.edu
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house,rec.woodworking
From: javery@bnr.ca (Joel Avery)
Subject: Re: Importance of aging NEW cedar prior to treating?
Reply-To: javery@bnr.ca
Organization: Bell-Northern Research
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 12:41:33 GMT

In article <3936@phred.UUCP>, johng@phred.UUCP (johng) writes:
|> I have a new cedar shingle sidewall and a  new cedar lattice staircase.
|> I'm trying to understand what the best course of treatment is that would 
|> 1) preserve the origional look of the wood
|> 2) not require too much maintenance (every year)
|> 
|> The Shake Institute and Flood Mfg (CWF finishes) argue that new sawn cedar
|> needs to be aged before treating. They say new sawn wood won't accept much
|> treatment, and locking the water in may actually damage the wood.
|> 
|> Others say you can and should stain the wood after a few weeks of weather.

Both of the above are true.  When I bought my cedar from the mill (okay, it
was milled in BC, then shipped to Ontario), they recommended a treatment called
Cetol 1 for my deck.  Different uses of cedar require different kinds of Cetol,
for example, I believe cedar siding uses Cetol 2 as a final coat.  This stuff 
was hard to find.  When I needed to buy more, I could only find it in lumber 
yards, not hardware stores, and not hardware stores that sell a lot of lumber.

Getting back to the point, I was told to apply this after the wood had dried
sufficiently, which was defined as three weeks of normal summer weather.  I 
built the deck three years ago when we had normal summer weather.  

Unfortunatly, it seems that I am applying a new coat every spring, and the
stuff is $40 for 4 litres here in Canada.  It does add a yellow tinge to the 
wood, but I find it preferable to the normal aging of cedar.  I'm still happy
with my choice, but I don't rave about it.
|>
|> johng

-- 

Joel Avery   <javery@bnr.ca>
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: armstrng@cs.dal.ca (Stan Armstrong)
Subject: Shop vacs
Organization: Math, Stats & CS, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 1992 19:07:19 GMT

My Craftsman shop vac just gave up the ghost after 20 years of yeoman's 
service. I would like advice on replacing it.

I use the vac for general cleanup and also for dustcollecting on my
radial arm saw and router table. My wife is interested in the new
machines that also work as wet solution carpet cleaners. Do
you have any knowledge or experience with shop vacs that might
be helpful?

Are there clear winners? Losers? Features to look for? Worthless features?

Thanks.

-- 
Stan Armstrong. Religious Studies Dept, Saint Mary's University, Halifax, N.S.
Armstrong@husky1.stmarys.ca | att!clyde!watmath!water!dalcs!armstrng
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house,rec.woodworking
From: tom@oracorp.com (Tom)
Subject: Re: Attaching Stud Wall to Concrete
Organization: ORA Corporation
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL3
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1992 18:29:07 GMT

games@max.u.washington.edu writes:
: In article <92269.131309DMEJJ@CUNYVM.BITNET>, DMEJJ@CUNYVM.BITNET writes:
: > 
: > I was wondering if anyone can give me some advice on this topic.  I am paneling
: > my basement soon.  The walls and floor are concrete.  The walls are a bit
: > uneven (a bit wavy).  What I plan on doing is to put up a stud wall so I can
: > attach the paneling to an even wall.  This is where I need some advice.
: > I would like to attach the wall to the floor in the easiest way.  The two
: > ways that I have in mind are.
: >      1)Using an impact nailer.  It shoots a nail through the wood of the wall,
: > with a 22.cal load.
: >      2)Using screws designed for driving into concrete.  I'm not sure of
: > what they are called.  You first drill a hole through the wood and into
: > the concrete, then driving a screw that looks like a drywall screw, but with
: > wider threads.
: > Has anyone used either of these methods?  And if so, which is better?
: > Thank you.
: > Daniel
: > -------
: 
: Actually there is a third way, and it is the best of all of them
: (I hate powder actuated fasteners, and I havent seen any that shoot through
: 2x4, and THEN on into the wall.)


How about a 4th way?  Put your wall frame into place, and if it's a little
short (sometimes necessary to stand the frame up), shim it at the top to
make the whole frame fit really snug to the floor.  Get yourself some
2-1/2" masonry screws (assuming you have single 2x4 for a sill plate,
and nail them into place with a 4 or 8 lb. hammer.  The only thing is,
the frame has to be a snug (tight) fit, otherwise the sill plate will
tend to bounce up and pull the nails.  Just run some dry wall screws
of the size into the floor joists overhead, and that wall ain't going
anywhere.  It's tiring, but it really builds up your forarm ala Popeye.

-- Tom
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: harrism@aquila.rtp.dg.com (Mike Harris)
Subject: Re: Removing wallpaper
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 11:44:41 GMT
Reply-To: harrism@dg-rtp.dg.com
Organization: Data General Corp., Research Triangle Park, NC

In article <1992Sep29.102605.185@cpvax.cpses.tu.com>, robert@cpvax.cpses.tu.com writes:
|> In article <35298@cbmvax.commodore.com>, brian@cbmvax.commodore.com (Brian Fennimore) writes:
|> >
|> > It has pretty heavy textured wallpaper. What are your experiences with
|> > removing wallpaper? Is a steamer the way to go? Solvents? What should I
|> > refrain from doing when removing the wallpaper?
|> > 
|> 
|> I would recommend you go for the steamer.  I spent half a day scraping
|> paper off using hot water and the going was soooooo slow and messy, I
|> decided to rent a steamer for about $30.  In two hours, I had the rest
|> of that room and another finished.
|> 
|> I'll start with the steamer the next time!

	Down here in the arid south I found the steamer unnecessary.
	We started with a home steamer (the $60 Wagner) and found
	the steam very uneven & hard to control. We quickly discovered
	that the wall paper would pull down easily. I don't know if it
	was the humidity or whether they used post-it note glue but
	we quickly completed the job without the steamer.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: patter@dasher.uucp (24224-guthrie)
Subject: Re: Installing deadbolts in steel doors
Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 92 16:24:21 GMT

In article <1992Oct1.142223.8581@infonode.ingr.com> lester@naomi.b23b.ingr.com writes:

>I always drill until the pilot bit emerges out the other side of my work.
>That way I _know_ that when I drill from the other side that it will
>line up.  If the door is too thick for this, drill as deep as you can
>and then chuck a regular bit in your drill to finish the pilot hole.
>Continue with the hole saw from the other side.

True, but if the drill is not held perfectly square to the door, you'll
get the entire hole at an angle. If you drill from both sides, both
openings will be in the right place, even if the drill drifts a little.
If you have a good eye with the drill, you won't drift enough to make
a difference, but if you do drift too much, the lock mechanism will bind.

With a steel door, the consequences of this are expensive (at Riggs-Distler,
we used auto body repair techniques to fix mistakes).

patter@dasher.cc.bellcore.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
                    |
George Patterson -  | Of course truth is stranger than fiction; after
                    | all, good fiction must make sense.
                    |                        Samuel Clemens
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house,misc.cats,misc.kids
From: carlo@electro.electro.com (Carlo Sgro)
Subject: Summary: How do you remove urine smells from carpet?
Organization: Electrohome Ltd., Kitchener, ON, Canada
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 1992 17:20:48 GMT


In article <1992Sep22.192148.14809@electro.electro.com> I wrote:
> Can anyone recommend a good, proven way to remove the smell of baby and cat
> urine and spilled milk from carpet?  The smells have built up over the past
> few weeks or months and are most intense when the humidity is high and
> windows are closed.  We hesitate to replace the carpet at this point since 
> the baby is still being toilet-trained.  Does anyone have any 
> recommendations?

Thanks to all that replied to my question on how to get urine smells out of
carpet.  By far, the prevalent response was to use an enzyme-based remover 
such as Outright! or Nature's Miracle.  I've purchased a similar product 
(neither of the brands are available in my area) and will be trying it out
on the weekend.  Thanks muchly to the following people:

From: watcgl!rigel.dfrf.nasa.gov!shafer (Mary Shafer)
From: Andy Hill <watcgl!hpbsl118.boi.hp.com!ahill>
From: watcgl!tekig1.pen.tek.com!karenw (Karen A Walker)
From: Rick Farnbach <watcgl!wv.MENTORG.COM!fsf>
From: wiedeman@altair.acs.uci.edu (Lyle Wiedeman)
Subject: Re: when does PMI stop?
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
Organization: University of California, Irvine
Date: 29 Sep 92 13:25:34 GMT

Forgive me if this point has been made, and I missed it: if you get
an FHA loan, you DON'T stop paying PMI.  It's required, flat and simple.

In this case, though, when you have a high enough LTV, you
can re-finance and get a non-FHA non-PMI loan.

	Lyle Wiedeman                 Office of Academic Computing
	wiedeman@uci.edu              Univ. Calif. Irvine
	wiedeman@UCI.BITNET           Irvine, CA  92717
    	(714) 856-8718	    	      FAX (714) 725-2069
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: smb@ulysses.att.com (Steven Bellovin)
Subject: Re: elec. question: 2 wires per screw terminal allowed?
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1992 00:38:40 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories

In article <1992Oct1.125706.983@philabs.philips.com>, mja@philabs.philips.com (Michael Amato) writes:
> I read the cover of my service panel (just recently installed) and it seems
> to make a distinction between neutral connections and grounding. It lists
> the wire size and screw torques required for neutral connections and then
> gives allowed multiple equipment _ground_ wire combinations for the different
> size screws. Not very clear. I started to check the NEC but got
> sidetracked last night.

Not to say it isn't there, but I've never seen anything in the NEC
about that.  I suspect that it's more a matter for UL -- if a device
is listed for two wires per screw, it's permitted, and not otherwise.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house
From: al@qiclab.scn.rain.com (Alan Peterman)
Subject: Grainger (was Re: The programmable thermostat jungle)
Organization: SCN Research/Qic Laboratories of Tigard, Oregon.
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 05:58:21 GMT

In article <1992Sep30.182523.12312@clpd.kodak.com> staffan@ca.serum.kodak.com (Kenneth Staffan (x37507)) writes:
>My questions - I've been shopping for programmable thermostats.  I've
>seen some Honeywell, Robertshaw, Hunter, and a couple other brands I can't
>recall offhand.  Problem is, the places I've stopped rarely have complete
>lines, and it's really hard to compare features between brands and models
>(even when the owner's manuals are pulled out).  So...
>
>	question 1 - Has anybody seen (magazine, etc.) or have a table
>			which compares features and prices across
>			different makes an models?

Get a Grainger catalog.  16 pages of thermostats (and stats on them)!  It
even has tables of "Thermostat Specifications and Selection Data"..
very nice indeed.

BTW - EVERYONE should have one of these books - it's free, 2700 pages
of stuff for everything mechanical or electrical, many pages of general
information, and theirprices are somewhat discounted from list.  There's
200 pages of motors, probably 50-100 pages of relays, timers and switches,
lots of test gear (including Fluke, Leader etc.), 150 pages of lighting
stuff, 100+ pages of hand tools, another hundred of power tools, and
50+ pages each of air compressors, heating & air conditioning, pneumatics,
pumps & wells, and a section on terminology & data..  a good refrence!

Look in your local phone book under Grainger..or try 1-800-225-5994 to
find the local branch.

-- 
Alan L. Peterman                                 (503)-684-1984 hm & work
                       al@qiclab.scn.rain.com
It's odd how as I get older, the days are longer, but the years are shorter!