Category Archives: Maintenance and Repair

Maintenance, installs, or repairs made during the project.

Safety for the Birdies

Posted on May 1, 2017 by ellen

Covering the chimney opening with barrier wire has been on the to do list for some time. Luckily some square wire mesh was accessible in the full garage so I cut some and installed it on the chimney. Every spring … Continue reading →

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Fixing the ERV

Posted on April 23, 2017 by ellen

I broke the ERV by trying to install an automated control system with the Nest to the Boost control and with Lutron devices to the 0-10 variable control system. The support for the Recouperator was very helpful and sent a … Continue reading →

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Broken Ventilation System!

Posted on April 3, 2017 by ellen

Amazing isn’t it? I can’t be satisfied with the existing system, I had to try to control it automatically. That would be OK if not for the problems I cause. The first project was just to connect the system to … Continue reading →

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Central Vacuum in Action

Posted on February 28, 2017 by ellen

Ahhh. Listen to the whooshing sound of the air sucking up tons of dirt. Wow, look at the dust disappearing from the duster into the innards of the pipe opening. A bit louder but what a great tool the power … Continue reading →

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Moved Modem

Posted on February 26, 2017 by ellen

Ever since we moved in, the modem for our internet connection has been installed right at the garage door. There is a closet built in there now and although the electricians installed an extra outlet for the equipment, it did … Continue reading →

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LED Garage Light Bulb Replacements

Posted on December 18, 2016 by ellen

When my brother was helping with the construction he worked in the garage under our old florescent light bulbs. We had to supplement with extra lighting to see well enough to do the work. He told me that older florescent … Continue reading →

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Annual Garage Clean Out

Posted on December 16, 2016 by ellen

We use the garage as a work space during the warmer months and it gets filled with materials and tools. So I took today very late in the fall to clear it out so the car can fit in it … Continue reading →

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Mang Ox Filter Repair

Posted on October 16, 2016 by ellen

The chlorine batch connection to the iron filter started leaking few months ago. I didn’t have time or inclination to figure out what was wrong with it after a few quick tries to tighten the connection didn’t work. I was … Continue reading →

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Patch Concrete Edge

Posted on September 23, 2016 by ellen

There was a large gap between the edge of the new concrete floor and the steps. I think this gap was caused by the moisture barrier plastic curling up at this edge, keeping the concrete from flowing all the way … Continue reading →

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Cleaning the Spa Water

Posted on February 25, 2016 by ellen

The spa water was getting dirty. There was sand on the bottom that did not seem to be getting to the filter.  So I bought a small Intex vacuum kit to suck up the dirt through the filter system. Unfortunately … Continue reading →

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One Thing Leads to Another

Posted on February 6, 2016 by ellen

When I woke up this morning I had no idea I was going to be painting a wall. But I cleared the dining room floor for scrubbing and sealing and decided I better wash the block wall before I put … Continue reading →

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Resealing the Stained Concrete Floor

Posted on February 5, 2016 by ellen

As a preparation for installing walls, and to just make the spaces more pleasant, I decided to clean and reseal the concrete floor. This project is also on the winter to do list. I hauled in the SoyCrete stain and … Continue reading →

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Energy Star Washer and Gas Dryer

Posted on February 2, 2016 by ellen

I noticed that our older washing machine was leaking every time we did a load. The leak seemed to increase in volume and I had wanted to replace this older washer with a more energy efficient one for our LEED … Continue reading →

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Tweaking the Pump Wiring Again

Posted on January 31, 2016 by ellen

As part of the pump install I changed the wiring again. In the past I had trouble with the primary and secondary pumps working independently. I thought that was one of the things that wore out the Taco 011 pump … Continue reading →

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Heat is Back On

Posted on January 31, 2016 by ellen

I left the heat off until the days stopped being sunny. During that time the house temperature didn’t go below 64 degrees. Even when it got down to 20 degrees outside at night. We woke up to a steady 64 … Continue reading →

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Ach Phooey! Taco Pump Siezed

Posted on January 24, 2016 by ellen

Since we returned from a trip to see our newest grandson about a week ago, I’d been noticing that the floor was not warm but the radiators in the back were. I thought since I had turned the heat down … Continue reading →

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Another Flaw in Boiler Piping Redesigned

Posted on January 20, 2016 by ellen

The placement of the Taco iSeries mixing valve is designed to temper the water going into the stove, however, that valve also limits the flow of water returning from the storage loop. I realized this in the middle of the … Continue reading →

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Fireplace Boiler System Re-design

Posted on January 19, 2016 by ellen

During our first fire in the fireplace boiler the hot water was not getting out of the stove. I took some thermal photos to try to capture where the heat was going. The photo appears to show that the hot … Continue reading →

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Fixing a Printer

Posted on January 4, 2016 by ellen

I purchase a lot of supplies online, and occasionally an error is made in ordering or shipping and I have to return an item. It has always been a hassle to get the return slips printed. Either at our daughter’s … Continue reading →

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Cleaning the Challenger’s Heat Exchanger

Posted on December 10, 2015 by ellen

When I was wiring the boiler, I checked the condensate overflow system on the boiler and noticed the plastic drain was full of black gunk. I cleaned it out and about a week later checked it again and it was … Continue reading →

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