Recent comments in /f/DIY

dilligaf4lyfe t1_iy4p6yz wrote

What the other guy said. The main breaker shuts off everything downstream, but everything upstream of the main breaker in the panel is hot (ie the lugs). And they're pretty easy to hit. You'd have to pull the meter to fully deenergize the enclosure, and that's a pain in the ass to deal with. Generally, you need to call the utility, although you can always break that rule, but pulling meters isn't something I'd recommend to a DIYer because depending on the state of the meter base, there's serious risk of pulling a lug off and arcing it to the can.

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PCKeith t1_iy4o97a wrote

I just used a Powerline network adapter kit. That runs through the electrical outlets. I put one in the room where my router is and the other one in my living room to feed my entertainment system. I have a switch in the living room and it is attached to all of the devices including a wireless access point for better wifi signal out there. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01929ESG6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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shikuto t1_iy4o865 wrote

We use tools to help us pull wire/cable in conduit. The one that would be applicable here would be a steel fish-tape. Something like this, of a sufficient length, would be appropriate: https://www.kleintools.com/catalog/fish-tapes/steel-fish-tape-18-inch-x-50-foot

u/VanillianArt tagging you here so you see it. If you’re going to go this route, PLEASE verify that the conduit doesn’t terminate into an electrical panel. If it does, and the conduit is appropriately grounded the way it should be, you aren’t in much physical danger. However, the fish tape will probably explode inside the panel, causing far more extensive AND expensive repairs than just getting a professional to do the work from the get go.

If the conduit isn’t properly grounded and does terminate into a panel, or is non-metallic (PVC, for instance,) then it the fish tape will essentially turn into an uninsulated wire that you’re holding on to. Definitely not a good time.

One way of checking would be to get a shop vacuum and run it “in reverse” (blow mode) and put it up against the junction box. Go over to the panel, and if you have air coming out of a conduit, it’s a no-go.

I think you’ll probably find that the conduit goes to the panel. Residential electrical doesn’t tend to use conduit for very much at all, except when it’s absolutely required. It would be cheaper and faster to install for the contractor to have just ran plenum-rated Cat5/6/etc cable than to have ran conduit for it. It seems pretty unlikely that they ran spare, future conduits in anything other than a custom home. From my experience building custom homes.

Edit: also, if it’s at all possible, I would recommend completely removing power from the panel in question before removing the cover, and only restoring power after the cover has been replaced. Otherwise, something could go horribly wrong. Even as a professional, taking a dead front off of a live residential panel can be a bit nerve wracking.

Edit 2: a word, for clarity

Source: former electrician of 9 years, with residential, commercial, and industrial experience.

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lknluvr4u t1_iy4moy9 wrote

I've got a 2 family house built in 1900. We had this same thing happen in our upstairs apartment the year that we got the house insulated with blown-in insulation. Our tenant told us that his apartment was crying. We went up to look and the walls and windows were dripping. We talked to a couple contractors and they all told us that it's fairly common in older houses when they're "over-insulated", and they all advised us to get a dehumidifier. We got our tenant a dehumidifier and our tenant says he has no more issues with it.

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imnotsoho t1_iy4lp35 wrote

I have read most of the answers here and this is how I think you should do this. Not sure what you mean by "open the outlet for that" but I am going to assume you mean a cover plate. You would need a vacuum cleaner where you can move the hose to blow air. Have a friend at one end blow air and you can test if the air is coming through the conduit where you think it should come out. If that works, make a "mouse out of a small wad of crumpled paper, tie it with light string - like cheap kite string and use the vacuum to pull it through the conduit. Use this string to pull a heavier string through until you have a pull rope that will be strong enough to pull your cable. It will probably be easiest to pull from the basement as gravity will be working with you instead of against you, however if the vacuum fits better at the other end use that for string, then you can pull cable either way. Bob's your uncle!

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Luminous_Echidna t1_iy4l88t wrote

We had some embedded bolts in our pool deck that were part of an old diving board installation. They laughed at a dremel using heavy duty cut-off wheels. I bought a cheap 4 1/2" angle grinder with cutting discs and it made short work of the bolts.

Using the right tool for the job saves much time and pain. (More recent example: trying to cut some HVAC ducting in-situ between floor joists. Started by trying good quality aviation snips and ended up with a sore wrist before even getting close to finishing one cut. Bought a reciprocating saw and the rest went soo much more smoothly.)

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