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Posts by Olin Lathrop
Most everyday electrical wiring has two wires Well, no. Nowadays you usually get hot, neutral (or "return"), and ground. At least here in North America where houses get power from the secondary ...
Do the math! Calculate the present value of each loan. Add the buy down amount to the cost of the loan with the lower interest rate. Whichever is lower wins. That said, there are some additiona...
The first thing I would try is to replace the dimmer. New dimmers work differently than old dimmers, at least the right kind of new dimmer. Old dimmers worked by turning on their output for part ...
The hose is probably coiled up normally. When there is no water pressure, there is little force trying to uncoil it. When water pressure is increased in the hose, the little extra diameter from u...
You haven't defined exactly what features are part of "smart" versus "dumb". What most people consider "smart TV" features require a network connection. No matter how smart a TV is, if you don't ...
What filter stages or combinations are important for an average residential consumer getting municipal water? None. Municipal water plants already do all that for you. They also have to test the...
Current lithium ion batteries are best stored for long life at around 70% of full charge. However, getting there and maintaining that for typical home power tools may be more trouble than it's wor...
I've had some old cordless tools where the tool itself has a charger port. I've tried running these while plugged in (but with the battery drained) and they didn't work. That's because the charger...
You can't test such a timer with just a voltmeter. It is possible that the timer requires the load to try to draw some minimum current, which a voltmeter probably wouldn't. Or, the timer might ha...
"Home Improvement" isn't the most descriptive name, but it is something many people will be familiar with. This site should be about the structure and systems of a residential building. That incl...
Maybe your switch is starting to wear out. The contacts might not be making solid contact when the switch is supposed to be on. To test this, replace the switch. If it now works, toss the old on...
1 and 2 are OK, but 3 and 4 are not. Manufacturers and suppliers come and go too frequently and may be quite different around the world. These kind of "which brand is best" answers also tend to b...
I'm confused why you would bother buying grounding wire. Grounding wire is intended to only carry ground, which shouldn't ever be more than a few volts from other ground, like metal water pipes. ...
Site Name Invasive Species Short Description What species are invasive, how to identify them, how they effect the native ecosystem, and how to deal with them. Background This section is long, ...
Some amount of jargon specific to the site domain is expected and necessary. However, "home improvement" is very broad and not a specialized niche. You don't go to college to get a degree in Home...
