• Welcome to OGBoards 10.0, keep in mind that we will be making LOTS of changes to smooth out the experience here and make it as close as possible functionally to the old software, but feel free to drop suggestions or requests in the Tech Support subforum!

Official Pit Home Improvement/DIY thread

Once it warms up outside they'll stop trying to get in. I wouldn't spend a lot of time on it unless you're having a major problem, which could indicate you've actually got a nest somewhere in your siding or attic.
 
spiffylubes said:
Anyone have any tips on how to stop wasps (and what looked a little like a hornet...) from getting into the house? I'm planning on trying to find any small holes I can and filling them with spray foam and maybe taping to cover the space around the fireplace cover, but any tips on maybe something to look for beyond those?
Click to expand...

Deacon923 said:
Once it warms up outside they'll stop trying to get in. I wouldn't spend a lot of time on it unless you're having a major problem, which could indicate you've actually got a nest somewhere in your siding or attic.
Click to expand...

Yeah, check the attic. They love to fly up the eave and build nests. I had a nest built in an outside electrical outlet last year, which was a a real pain to deal with.
 
Deaconblue said:
Congrats on getting the fan installed. Looks good! 3 blades is unusual.
Click to expand...

We actually have that same 3-blade fan in a different color, it is great. I don't know if it is the 3 blades or their width or the diameter of the spinning part, but it spins like an airplane propeller and cools the room off in seconds, much faster than the 4 or 5 blade fans we have in other rooms.
 
Deaconblue said:
Congrats on getting the fan installed. Looks good! 3 blades is unusual.
Click to expand...

Deaconblue, I've got a plumbing question for you. I'm at wits end with a yard hydrant in my garden. I've got a 3/4" black plastic supply line going into a 90 degree brass elbow at the bottom of the hydrant. I've got it double clamped and cannot for the life of me stop it from dripping. I've taken a lighter and softened up the supply line hoping it would help it form better to the elbow. I've adjusted the angle of the hydrant up and down, left and right thinking the angle may be the cause to no avail. Its one small drip, and I'm positive its coming from the supply/elbow connection. Do you have any tips or tricks I'm not thinking of? I'm to the point where I'm ready to call a plumber, but I know it'll be a 10 minute fix for them.
 
tsywake said:
Deaconblue, I've got a plumbing question for you. I'm at wits end with a yard hydrant in my garden. I've got a 3/4" black plastic supply line going into a 90 degree brass elbow at the bottom of the hydrant. I've got it double clamped and cannot for the life of me stop it from dripping. I've taken a lighter and softened up the supply line hoping it would help it form better to the elbow. I've adjusted the angle of the hydrant up and down, left and right thinking the angle may be the cause to no avail. Its one small drip, and I'm positive its coming from the supply/elbow connection. Do you have any tips or tricks I'm not thinking of? I'm to the point where I'm ready to call a plumber, but I know it'll be a 10 minute fix for them.
Click to expand...

Some thoughts for you. Are you sure that the connection of the elbow to the rest of the hydrant is not leaking? (from your description its a little hard to tell if the brass elbow is actually part of the hydrant or just connected to it. Is the mating surface of the brass elbow free from little burrs that didn't get removed during the manufacturing process? Similarly, check the inside of the black supply line. Is there a seam of plastic inside the pipe that prevents a perfect seal?

Second, perhaps some Teflon tape around the brass elbow before you slide it into the pipe and put on the clamps.

Are you using the screw type clamps or the spring type? I'd use the screw type clamps. They sometimes give better seal than the spring type ones. They also allow better fine tuning of the pressure on the joint. Sometimes too much pressure is as bad as not enough.

Are you certain there is not a pinhole leak in the black supply line? How difficult is it to replace the two inches or the last foot or so of the black plastic pipe?

My thoughts for now...
 
Its definitely coming from the supply line/elbow connection. There are no burs on either piece, and I'm using the screw clamps. I've not tried teflon tape wrapping the elbow yet, so I'll most likely do that tomorrow when I can cut the water off for a little while.
 
Teflon tape has solved so many plumbing problems for me. It's gotten to the point now that I pretty much automatically apply it to any connection I mess with.
 
I always tape threaded connections, but never have put any on a clamped connection before. My prior elbow was plastic, and it also leaked. I was very tempted to just epoxy those two pieces together and be done with it. I've got 5 different yard hydrants throughout my yard, and this is the only one I've ever had a problem with. I love having them, considering our front yard is 3 acres. It makes watering any point in the yard an easy task.
 
On a separate note, for the past month(!) we have been in the process of replacing the concrete walk and stairs to our front door with a nicer version. Dealing with the masons has been a huge pain in the @$$. They just do things, then ask if that's what I wanted. It's freaking concrete and brick, guys. Ask me BEFORE you do the work. They had to demo a bunch of stuff they built and we almost ran out of brick as a result. And I have to point out obvious solutions to problems that stump them, when I know zip about masonry. The workmanship is good, but holy crap the process has been a giant pain.

I don't want to post the name of the company in public, but if anyone is getting masonry work done in Guilford county shoot me a PM and I'll steer you away from this crowd.
 
tsywake said:
I always tape threaded connections, but never have put any on a clamped connection before. My prior elbow was plastic, and it also leaked. I was very tempted to just epoxy those two pieces together and be done with it. I've got 5 different yard hydrants throughout my yard, and this is the only one I've ever had a problem with. I love having them, considering our front yard is 3 acres. It makes watering any point in the yard an easy task.
Click to expand...

Yeah, having things like yard hydrants are really useful with a yard that big. Any success? or is it time to dry it out and use the epoxy?
 
I'm hoping to get around to it tomorrow afternoon. I haven't had the time to be able to do it and cut the water off to the rest of the house without pissing off the Mrs. I'm keeping my fingers crossed the tape will take care of it.

The ground is so dry, I'm probably going to put the water pump back in the river to help water the garden and yard. In the past I've run extension cords down to the electric pump at the river, but this year I think I'll take the sub-soiler rock plow and dig a trench to bury and outdoor power cable with a light switch. I'd rather pay the power bill and use great water than pay the water bill and use municipal water.
 
Question for anyone regarding shower speakers. We're having our bathroom redone (not at all DIY) by a design/build firm, and I wanted to look into shower speakers. I know Kohler has that Moxie showerhead thing, but I don't want to be stuck with one specific showerhead, plus you have to take the speaker out of the shower to charge it and whatnot. Anyone have any experience at all with the Kohler soundtiles? They have that big DTV system thing you can get, but I think I'd rather just run the speakers to an amp and have a bluetooth adapter plugged in so I could stream music. Would it sound weird in a big glass enclosed shower?
 
Last edited:
how long are your showers/important is music that you can't save $1000 and just bring a speaker into the bathroom?

*eta: no doubt it's a cool thing and to each their own, i just wonder at what point people make the decision to incorporate that into their bathroom rather than just bringing a speaker in
 
yeah, I have one of these and it works great and was cheap as shit.

1384217039504-P-1262384.jpg
 
spiffylubes said:
Question for anyone regarding shower speakers. We're having our bathroom redone (not at all DIY) by a design/build firm, and I wanted to look into shower speakers. I know Kohler has that Moxie showerhead thing, but I don't want to be stuck with one specific showerhead, plus you have to take the speaker out of the shower to charge it and whatnot. Anyone have any experience at all with the Kohler soundtiles? They have that big DTV system thing you can get, but I think I'd rather just run the speakers to an amp and have a bluetooth adapter plugged in so I could stream music. Would it sounds weird in a big glass enclosed shower?
Click to expand...

This rates high on the Wake Forest, Stuff White People Like, First World Problems board...
 
lbE08 said:
how long are your showers/important is music that you can't save $1000 and just bring a speaker into the bathroom?

*eta: no doubt it's a cool thing and to each their own, i just wonder at what point people make the decision to incorporate that into their bathroom rather than just bringing a speaker in
Click to expand...

Hey, some of us enjoy long showers! And some of us are sweaty folks...

If it did come out to be $1000, I wouldn't do it. I'm thinking it can be considerably cheaper than that, but I'm still waiting on even a rough estimate from the contractor. I'd hope it's not much more than just the cost of the speaker, considering it just fits in around tiles and they don't even have to wire it to anything...
 
Tsy- you may want to consider burying PVC conduit and pulling THHN versus just burying UF cable. If your going to go through the effort of digging, might as well do it right
 
BDL said:
Tsy- you may want to consider burying PVC conduit and pulling THHN versus just burying UF cable. If your going to go through the effort of digging, might as well do it right
Click to expand...

That may be what I end up doing. I'm throwing around the idea of eventually building a powered deck/treehouse on the hill by the river, so it'd be nice to have the conduit run to carry the heavier load cable. Its an expense that I'm not sure I want to take on now, so I may take my existing UF cable, stretch it across the yard and just move it when I mow.
 
Deaconblue said:
Yeah, having things like yard hydrants are really useful with a yard that big. Any success? or is it time to dry it out and use the epoxy?
Click to expand...

I ended up wrapping the brass elbow with what felt like 1/8" of tape, enough that it took a rubber mallet to beat the hydrant onto the line, even after softening the line. It took care of the leak though, so I happily filled in the hole. Thanks again for the tip.

One of the best things I did was bury them with sand. Its make digging them out for repairs much easier.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top