Enough of COVID...what are you doing to the house?

Forum Sponsor
sburns said:
Hey guys, got this letter from Enbridge (my local gas supplier) they need to replace my meter. Haven't looked at the schedule yet, the letter doesn't specify when they will be in the area, and my schedule is kinda bonkers right now, + the holidays coming up.
Just wondering if there is any stupidity I need to watch out for with this kinda of work/service?
Click to expand...
They replaced my meter a few years back. In my case it was a service call and I called them (meter was making noises). From my experience (and it was overall good).

They DO need access to the house to shutdown equipment first (before swap) and then to check the equipment (and/or relight older gear) when they are done. They are shutting down your gas when they do the swap so they need to make sure they are not leaving some massive leak from a failed furnace that did not relight, whatever, etc. in the house afterwards.... So it will not be outside only like a hydro meter.

Make sure the equipment has the required access (for them but also by code) and if you have older gear make sure there are no items that could be tagged (do your own check before hand). Make sure everything is in good operating condition. As an example my boiler will get a bit of rust dust in the firebox over the year(s), I cleaned everything up before hand... so no questions. Make sure you are not storing shifty stuff in the furnace room (like a wood piled against the furnace, gas lawnmower, oil paint, gas cans, propane tanks, whatever, yes people do dumb stuff like this)...

IME the Enbridge guys are not like the rental guys and are not looking to find some obscure thing to red tag the service and pressure you into a rental contract(s). But I figure it is best to have everything in good working order before hand, good working order is a good thing to do anyways. Sucks being tagged in winter.
 
The Enbridge guy actually helped me because he noted some issues with my hot water tank. Told me it’s old enough that I should be able to get out of the Enercare contract as it’s showing its age and could leak in the near future.

He was right. $25 to get out of Enercare contract and I bought a new hot water tank instead of a rental.
 
backmarkerducati said:
They replaced my meter a few years back. In my case it was a service call and I called them (meter was making noises). From my experience (and it was overall good).

They DO need access to the house to shutdown equipment first (before swap) and then to check the equipment (and/or relight older gear) when they are done. They are shutting down your gas when they do the swap so they need to make sure they are not leaving some massive leak from a failed furnace that did not relight, whatever, etc. in the house afterwards.... So it will not be outside only like a hydro meter.

Make sure the equipment has the required access (for them but also by code) and if you have older gear make sure there are no items that could be tagged (do your own check before hand). Make sure everything is in good operating condition. As an example my boiler will get a bit of rust dust in the firebox over the year(s), I cleaned everything up before hand... so no questions. Make sure you are not storing shifty stuff in the furnace room (like a wood piled against the furnace, gas lawnmower, oil paint, gas cans, propane tanks, whatever, yes people do dumb stuff like this)...

IME the Enbridge guys are not like the rental guys and are not looking to find some obscure thing to red tag the service and pressure you into a rental contract(s). But I figure it is best to have everything in good working order before hand, good working order is a good thing to do anyways. Sucks being tagged in winter.
Click to expand...
Add spray paint cans to the hazardous list. The propellant is propane.

Also, if you’re a contractor doing work adjacent a piece of equipment, try to verify it’s working before you start. I regularly got called in to fix something that was defective before the job started but the owner insisted it was working before and the contractor did something
 
Busy day so far…

1. Finished wiring up the shed
2. Tore down rest of unneeded gear
3. New trailer wheels installed (figure 92ftlb of torque is sufficient for the wheels)
4. Daughter got her first girlie light installed
 
Yesterday was leaves in the gutters day, supposedly.

When I got on the roof with the 40 volt blower I found that the roofers had allowed too much overhang on one edge. There was enough room for leaves and this years bumper crop of keys to get in but not enough room to get them out. Trimming 2" of shingles along the edge wasn't fun. Then the blower battery started showing its age, so a trip to HD for a new larger one, 6AH instead of 4.

An online check said they had 5 instock at Mavis but it was the usual "They're here somewhere" show. TBH they were nice enough to knock off a few bucks for making me walk around the store for a half hour. I got the 6 for the 4 price.

It was dark by the time I got home so I got to cook some scallops. I YouTubed to find out what I had been doing wrong.....not enough heat. No more tasty white erasers.

It was a day where one opens a bottle of wine, pours a glass, sets the glass aside and drinks what's in the bottle.
 
If your going to cook scallops, job one , buy the right scallops. Most supermarkets will have scallops that injected with white water solution, makes them plump and fresh looking . You need high heat and butter . You need to burn off the surface moisture or you’ll never get the Carmelized brown layer .
Go to Dave’s fish market on plains rd Burlington. Sell your soul . Get a cast iron pan or carbon steel and GOOD butter like the stuff from Tamiskamkng or Owen sound , salted but high fat .heat the butter until you see the milk solids separate and then whisk the butter in the pan until it browns and creates a nutty flavour , scallops in and brown two sides , interior creamy . Scallops out and fold in some sage . Whip that around then pour that mess over the scallops. Done .

Yes I went to cooking school on the coast in Tuscany . I apprenticed under Gulliano Bugliari , don’t get me started on idiots that think Alfredo has cream on it . It’s a Roman recipe with 4 ingredients. No cream , no garlic . I am very firm in my convictions.


Sent from my iPhone using GTAMotorcycle.com
 
crankcall said:
If your going to cook scallops, job one , buy the right scallops. Most supermarkets will have scallops that injected with white water solution, makes them plump and fresh looking . You need high heat and butter . You need to burn off the surface moisture or you’ll never get the Carmelized brown layer .
Go to Dave’s fish market on plains rd Burlington. Sell your soul . Get a cast iron pan or carbon steel and GOOD butter like the stuff from Tamiskamkng or Owen sound , salted but high fat .heat the butter until you see the milk solids separate and then whisk the butter in the pan until it browns and creates a nutty flavour , scallops in and brown two sides , interior creamy . Scallops out and fold in some sage . Whip that around then pour that mess over the scallops. Done .

Yes I went to cooking school on the coast in Tuscany . I apprenticed under Gulliano Bugliari , don’t get me started on idiots that think Alfredo has cream on it . It’s a Roman recipe with 4 ingredients. No cream , no garlic . I am very firm in my convictions.


Sent from my iPhone using GTAMotorcycle.com
Click to expand...
Dry Scallops. The frozen or soapy treated ones or frozen are good for fish chew snacks.
 
LVL Strength vs SPF and/or Span Tables???

Hitting a google search wall (where algorithms give me what it thinks I want not what I need) and I cannot find an easy "answer" to LVL strength vs 2X SPF lumber. For example a 1.75X11.875 LVL vs 2X12 SPF (assuming spruce select), what is stronger (assume LVL) and by what ratio.

For context, I need to calculate a beam to span roughly 11 feet. Attached to the beam will be 2X floor joists 16"OC that span 10 feet. No cantilever over the beam, one side of the joists are supported by the concrete block wall, the other with hangers on said beam. This is for the loft space, consider it "bedroom" load, 40 psf live/10 psf dead AFAIK.

I have an "option" to add a load bearing wall roughly mid span as I need a dividing wall here anyways... and the existing framing will lend itself to this if the beam needs to be too big but I need to do more demo in other areas than I want to do this... so ideally this is just a partition wall.

I have the "code" span tables for various grades of spruce/S in the SPF but the only answers I can find is that LVL is "stronger" but by how much? Or better yet actual LVL span tables???? Of course cost is a factor but if I can swing a smaller beam with LVL it will help with headroom. I assume whatever it is it will be multiple boards laminated (2 or 3).

Thoughts?
 
Looks like I’ll have to start reading up on washer repairs….FML.

Wife has this aversion to smaller loads in the washer and dryer so she loads it to the brim thinking it’s fine…and now the washer is loud as hell with something coming loose / letting go.

Never been a big fan of the front loader machines as I find them to be more troublesome than top loader ones.
 
backmarkerducati said:
LVL Strength vs SPF and/or Span Tables???

Hitting a google search wall (where algorithms give me what it thinks I want not what I need) and I cannot find an easy "answer" to LVL strength vs 2X SPF lumber. For example a 1.75X11.875 LVL vs 2X12 SPF (assuming spruce select), what is stronger (assume LVL) and by what ratio.

For context, I need to calculate a beam to span roughly 11 feet. Attached to the beam will be 2X floor joists 16"OC that span 10 feet. No cantilever over the beam, one side of the joists are supported by the concrete block wall, the other with hangers on said beam. This is for the loft space, consider it "bedroom" load, 40 psf live/10 psf dead AFAIK.

I have an "option" to add a load bearing wall roughly mid span as I need a dividing wall here anyways... and the existing framing will lend itself to this if the beam needs to be too big but I need to do more demo in other areas than I want to do this... so ideally this is just a partition wall.

I have the "code" span tables for various grades of spruce/S in the SPF but the only answers I can find is that LVL is "stronger" but by how much? Or better yet actual LVL span tables???? Of course cost is a factor but if I can swing a smaller beam with LVL it will help with headroom. I assume whatever it is it will be multiple boards laminated (2 or 3).

Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Something like this helps?

 
mimico_polak said:
Looks like I’ll have to start reading up on washer repairs….FML.

Wife has this aversion to smaller loads in the washer and dryer so she loads it to the brim thinking it’s fine…and now the washer is loud as hell with something coming loose / letting go.

Never been a big fan of the front loader machines as I find them to be more troublesome than top loader ones.
Click to expand...
Does the drum look like it may be twisted?

My neighbor put in a memory foam pillow into his washer. Soaked up so much water and became so heavy they when it went to spin, it came off of one of the springs that hold the drum "floating in the air".

I helped him open it up and set to spring back on.

There are many resources online for new parts and how to videos for repair. Sometimes that biggest issue is identifying which part is broken and placing the order. Usually the wife cant wait 2 days for the part to arrive.

There is an appliance parts place on Dundas near the auto mall. I believe there is one on The Queensway near Stanfield as well.

You may need one of these to get the front rubber seal off. I have been meaning to buy one but keep forgetting. I have needed it on several occasions already.

 
oioioi said:
Does the drum look like it may be twisted?

My neighbor put in a memory foam pillow into his washer. Soaked up so much water and became so heavy they when it went to spin, it came off of one of the springs that hold the drum "floating in the air".

I helped him open it up and set to spring back on.

There are many resources online for new parts and how to videos for repair. Sometimes that biggest issue is identifying which part is broken and placing the order. Usually the wife cant wait 2 days for the part to arrive.

There is an appliance parts place on Dundas near the auto mall. I believe there is one on The Queensway near Stanfield as well.

You may need one of these to get the front rubber seal off. I have been meaning to buy one but keep forgetting. I have needed it on several occasions already.

Click to expand...
Drum appears fine. Noise is loudest during the final spin cycle.

I’d say it’s similar to a wheel bearing / hub on a car.

As mentioned…hardest part is finding out WHAT the actual issue is. Replacement is the easier part for me typically.
 
Final spin cycle is the fastest spin speed.
Look for some similar issues with other washers. I'm sure the problem is common across all models.

Hopefully you are not going shopping for a new washer.
Forum Sponsor
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom