Category Archives: Maintenance and Repair

Maintenance, installs, or repairs made during the project.

The Wrong Tool

Posted on October 27, 2020 by ellen

Unfortunately I tried to use my Singer 9600 sewing machine to sew a spa cover with vinyl. I didn’t stop the first time the machine jammed. Just cleared the jamb and continued. Then it jammed again and I could not … Continue reading →

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Filters and Boiler Maintenance

Posted on October 18, 2020 by ellen

Fall is falling and some quick chores were completed. We have a Campbell filter on the whole house water supply. It takes a double charcoal filter and it relatively easy to change as long as the water turn off is … Continue reading →

Posted in -Chronological Recent Posts, Condensing Modulating Gas Boiler, Maintenance and Repair, Plumbing | Leave a comment

Packing the Pool

Posted on October 11, 2020 by ellen

I also packed the pool up for the winter. We had fun using it this summer with its jerry-rigged solar heater. But after reading the advice for and against I decided to take it down for the winter. We were … Continue reading →

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Fixed the Spa

Posted on October 11, 2020 by ellen

We are finally enjoying the spa again. It broke on January first and here we are in fall and it is back online. After installing the new Megatrol equipment, I had to wait for the new controller to get the … Continue reading →

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A New Porch in Spencer

Posted on September 23, 2020 by ellen

We built our first energy efficient house in the early 1980’s on 40 acres in the countryside outside of Spencer, Indiana. We have owned the property for over 40 years. But we recently decided that we should sell. This photo … Continue reading →

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Finally Repairing the Spa

Posted on August 26, 2020 by ellen

The story of the new spa equipment is a sad one. I unfortunately wired the first shipment of a new controller box incorrectly and blew out all the 110 volt connections by sending 220 to them. I sent everything back … Continue reading →

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Fixing Leaks in Pool Plumbing

Posted on July 2, 2020 by ellen

I’ve been spending a lot of time on the pool plumbing. I’ve had a couple of pipe blow offs including one that moved a lot of water out of the pool. Each one of these threaded pipes blew apart when … Continue reading →

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Solar Pool Set Up

Posted on June 7, 2020 by ellen

The extra parts arrived and all of the piping was finally connected with minimal leaks. Not without several issues however.I had the bypass valve assembly ready to install. Unfortunately the plastic that the reducers were made from did not hold … Continue reading →

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Solar Pool Heat

Posted on May 25, 2020 by ellen

Everything takes time and money. The solar pool heat project is no different. I have put together a system based on the old copper collector and a new stainless steel heat exchanger. This is the system design. I purchased a … Continue reading →

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Replaced Pool Valve

Posted on May 24, 2020 by ellen

The used pool filter had a big crack in the valve that I tried to repair with silicone goop and tape. It was good enough to run for awhile while the new valve was ordered from Intex. Because of COVID-19 … Continue reading →

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Pool Problems

Posted on May 8, 2020 by ellen

Seems like nothing I do lately is without issues. The pool was leveled but not very well, so that when the water delivery happened it was about 3″ out of level. Not too bad, water guy said he had seen … Continue reading →

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A Little More Awareness

Posted on May 4, 2020 by ellen

A little more awareness would have gone a long way towards my installation of the new spa pack. I usually read directions but this came without specific directions just diagrams and pictures. I followed the diagram to wire the equipment. … Continue reading →

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Getting Ready for Summer

Posted on April 27, 2020 by ellen

This summer will be a staycation due to the Covid-19 virus. So to get ready I want to set up a 4′ x 18′ round pool that I acquired a few years ago but never utilized. I was able to … Continue reading →

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New Spa Equipment Install

Posted on April 22, 2020 by ellen

The exercise spa that we have been enjoying since 2015 broke down just after New Year’s Day. I thought that the heater wore out but it turned out that the circuit board burned through where the heater connected to it. … Continue reading →

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Antique Vanity

Posted on March 6, 2020 by ellen

Originally I just had in mind to use a copper sink in the back bathroom. I love copper and this is the last bathroom remodel. But copper sinks are expensive so quite some time ago I found a huge copper … Continue reading →

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Stair Nosing in Hall

Posted on February 7, 2020 by ellen

The hall stair nosing was cracked and becoming a trip hazard. I had already replaced one of the edges with a dark bamboo piece that I purchased at a Repurposed Materials auction. I have a couple of 8 piece boxes … Continue reading →

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Utility Room Storage

Posted on February 2, 2020 by ellen

We severely reduced the size of the original utility room to make room for a dining area and to move the kitchen into the space. But in approximately a 6’x10’ room we fit in a stacking washer and dryer, a … Continue reading →

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Draining the Spa

Posted on February 1, 2020 by ellen

I had to drain the spa because the winter weather is unpredictable and I did not want the pipes to crack. My planned repair did not work. I ordered the new spa heater from Acura Spa but it was cold … Continue reading →

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ERV Fixed

Posted on January 20, 2020 by ellen

Unfortunately the control board on our ERV has been fried since last summer. It was probably due to several experiments trying to get the Lutron Grafix 0 to 10 voltage dimmer to work with the ERV. My son bought a … Continue reading →

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Spa Heater Burnout

Posted on January 20, 2020 by ellen

On New Year’s Day we used the spa and I noticed it was losing heat while it was open even though I had turned up the thermostat while we were using it. I noticed a day or two later that … Continue reading →

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