Hour 1
One Water Heater or Two?
Gregory wants to convert his two conventional water heaters to tankless. They are on either end of the house supporting 3 full bathrooms, washer, and dishwasher. One installer says he only needs one tankless on the end of the house which has the gas meter. Another contractor says he should use two smaller tankless heaters… What should he do?
The old water heaters are probably on opposite ends of the house because of the time it takes hot water to travel the length of the house. Tankless water heaters deliver 5 to 9 gallons of hot water per minute so one should accommodate the whole house. However, the addition of a recirculating pump will reduce the wait time for hot water at the bathroom farthest away from the water heater.
Can I Coat My Roof?
John wants to extend the life of his asphalt shingle roof and he’s seen commercials for coatings that are supposed to do that. If they are legitimate, which is best?
There are a number of coatings for roof surfaces but many of them are a solid color like black or white. However, we found a clear coating that has good customer reviews and says it can extend the life of your shingles by up to five years. Henry 812 RoofSaver can be sprayed or rolled onto a roof where it adds moisture back to the shingles, renews their appearance and locks in the ceramic granules, reducing further granule loss.
Hour 2
Solution for Sinking Light Switch
Solution for Sinking Switches
Susan replaced a light switch after a section of a wall was repaired in her house. After the repair the light switch was no longer flush with the decorative plate that covered it. She wants to know how to remedy the situation.
Often electrical boxes are not mounted far enough out on the studs before the drywall is installed. The solution to bring the switch out flush with the plate is to add a spacer (like these from Home Depot) to the mounting screw between the box and the switch. This does not require disconnecting any wires, but it would be wise to turn off the power at the breaker beforehand.
Workshop Storage Solutions
Some of the most popular Simple Solution Segments are the ones that revolve around Workshop Storage Solutions. Here are five of our favorites:
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Simple Solutions
Water Hardness Test—85% of the country has hard water so here’s a simple hard-water test. Add half a cup of tap water and 10 drops of liquid dish soap to a clean sixteen-ounce water bottle. Tighten the cap and vigorously shake the bottle for 30 seconds. If a thick head of lather forms on top of the water, then your water is probably not hard. If, however, the water turns cloudy with very little lather, then the water likely contains elevated mineral levels, and you should have the water professionally tested at a lab.
Brass Screw Tip—Small brass screws are beautiful and decorative, but they’re also soft, so it’s easy to strip the head or snap the screw in half. To prevent these problems, try this: First, drill a pilot hole, and then drive in a steel screw that’s the same size as the brass screw. What you’re doing is essentially threading a hole in the wood to accept the brass screw. Next, back out the steel screw and drive in the brass screw.
