Blue’s pad

[BLUE]

Stealing previous owners pictures and posting here. These were before we took possession of the current home.

-1973 vintage
-1671 cozy sq ft
-3 beds
-2 bathrooms
-2 living room spaces (fastest way to describe)


Quite a few things have changed really. More for another day I suppose.

[BLUE]

Tiny update. Power supply for external 850LM receiver came. Garage opener operation flawless for the 5-6 house lengths away I tested it with. Receiver is designed for minimal interference , high security , and allegedly longer range.

Fixed some exposed low voltage bell wire above the garage opener (leading to it). This could have involuntarily opened the garage while we were gone if left un-fixed.

I want to get one of these below To just experiment with in general . Requires a 2g SIM card , and operates via phone call or text. Secure ? Idk. Pretty impressive if you watch the YouTube modules including this type of Relay module and many more.

[Laecaon]

I would think a Wifi Opener would be easier. And of course then integrate with Tasker and IFTTT or SmartThings for some automation.

I installed the Chamberlain MyQ garage door opener. I have yet to automate it. But Im real tempted to setup a script on my phone to tell it to open.

[BLUE]

WiFi openers are always a good choice. Chamberlain is what I would have bought myself from a big box store. Currently have the older chamberlain a/c style unit in my garage with the old style limit switches.

I’m curious if I can actually integrate a GSM relay box (Or something similar )to open say...a locked mail-box (with a wall switch activation as well). I’m considering making my mail box much more secure.... not really sure of what I’m doing haha.

[BLUE]

Fan capacitor and 3-way switch quickly went in on Thursday evening. Works 100%. All 3 speeds work now instead of just medium. Surprise , China labeled capacitor wrong where low and medium speeds go....
[url=https://postimg.cc/RNnx2w9j]


Last minute sloppy repair/replacement Thursday night on rear Lawn #2 irritrol sprinkler valve



Another sloppy Last minute replacement of one of the front lawn sprinkler valve replacements as well...it was weeping 24/7 for I’m not sure how long from 3-6 months ago ? (Since I cleaned them last).




1” irritrol anti-siphon sprinkler valves = $17 a piece

Water usage in this area is kinda serious

[DRIVEN]

Shrug. I piss water here.

[BLUE]

Send some this way

[BLUE]

March of 2019 —- we decided to purchase a whole house fan. Ended up with energy efficient 3100cfm “quiet cool” brand unit. Since my other phone got dropped and died with my pics in it...I’m going to have to steal pictures yet again.

Applied for permits.





hang wherever...Best fits...


....open windows/doors...draws cool air in and vents Through attic at the same time....close up shop next morning and draw blinds....run as much as you like...


Installed intake grill in center of house. Can put in a bedroom or wherever... or additional units. Not quite the center of hall , but really....*shrugs* not losing sleep.


Intake baffles open = fan on


Intake baffles closed = fan off
(strips of insulation mounted around them when closed).


Finally decided at timer + HI/LOW switch was best for us. We love it ! Decided against the wireless remote setup. Not the best on placement/spacing.

It’s not humid in this area of the country. We love it. I pointed the fan towards the living space(s). It’s quiet...surprisingly. No vibrations or anything. We use it often at 82-83-degrees or less. My black and decker old school brushed motor 3/8” corded drill uses more energy than this does on high...lol.

I wired this unit into an originally dedicated “whole house vacuum” circuit breaker... yet the vacuum is MIA. Junction box location was marked off in attic.

Whole house fans aren’t for everyone. I’m glad we chose this model as I usually like to go oversized.... but this Unit was a wise choice. I got the numbers below off our PG&E smart meter.
-LOW SPEED = 68-watts
-HIGH SPEED = 268-watts
-OLD central A/C unit = 5,600-watts

It will NEVER replace A/C. Energy isn’t cheap in this part of the country.

You can literally stick a $20 box fan in the ceiling , and achieve the same thing.

[BLUE]

Small thing. Old thermostat broke a while ago. Put in a cheap WiFi Emerson SENSI thermostat recommended by HVAC dude for $73 ? Idk. Nice to turn it on through the APP , and see the past energy consumption. The router is like 17ft away , so signal is hardly ever dropped.

Still haven’t taken off the protective film hahah

[Laecaon]

I installed an Ecobee Smart Thermostat.(dunno why I never posted about it). It was $100 due to the Energy Trust of Oregon. Yea, getting the log is cool. Changing settings from the phone is nice too. Definitely a nice simple upgrade.

[BLUE]

Very nice price !

[BLUE]

(4-5 months ago) we had a brand new split system furnace/central air put in. Looked at high efficiency mini splits as well. Old unit was...beyond its last leg. I crimped a new connector off a contactor that literally burned off the previous summer on a 100-degree day. Wasn’t gonna pay for another coil repair/top off. Besides it didn’t work very well = money burner..

Had I guy I know come put the system in at a discount , and he let me save even more money since I pulled out the old stuff myself. I was going to do the install myself , but for $300 more I could have a pro do it for me.. ( I’ve installed furnaces but never central air ).

Old furnace was in good shape....but it wasn’t going to be matched to the system.

New one

New furnace/coil


New setup looks ton more user friendly on replacement parts. Coil , contractors , hell even the heat exchanger is suppose to be friendly change..not super cheap but none the less.

Our furnace/coil is a downdraft...setup...in the closet....ducting distribution is all below the subfloor except the intake of course. Also ended up replacing the old crappy dedicated breaker from 220v 50amps max to a crisp 40amp (max)per the manual myself.

Old 1-deer dinosaur A/C = 5,600 watts @ any temp
New 16-seer single stage A/C = 3,600 watts @ 80-degrees (I’ve only looked once off our PG&E smart meter, and not when it’s been 98-107 degrees recently)

[Taterhead]

I had to go through that at the beginning of last year. Luckily for me I extended my home warranty by year when the 1st year was up since I knew the AC unit was from’94. The HVAC company that the warranty company uses tried to tell me I had to change my gas furnace for them to be compatible. I called bullshit, talked to an HVAC buddy, and ended up having to only pay for the new “compatible” (which I knew I needed for the refrigerant difference) evaporator coils. In the end save me about a grand and as soon as the replacement was done I cancelled the home warranty.

[BLUE]

Yup. I hear that. Save the furnace if it’s good for sure. Home warranty buttholes. Ended up going To a more bigger system... *Tim Allen grunt*

[BLUE]

Some months ago ? Replaced 10/3 house wire and added (2) junction boxS in the (attic And kitchen north wall) at some point recently. Stove house wiring sheathing and insulation was bare + sparking in the attic = no bueno.

Electrical smoke ain’t no joke.

(5) different 24-hour electrical outfits I contacted were non-reachable over the weekend it happened. I was working 13-15 hour days at that time. Probably backlogged with appointments/projects , at that time.

Decided to (forced to) do myself , Applied for necessary boring local stuff etc , When to Home Depot , grabbed materials , closed up wall/oven range hood when all was given a-ok.

Also last year , replaced (2) 110v 12-gauge zinsco circuit breakers made by “Connecticut electric”. I’ve REALLY been meaning to replace the whole money pit panel. It’s external with the PG&E smart meter socket on the outside (wires underground).

Breakers locally @ Lowe’s are $60 a piece. Main breaker is $100-$200 online alone. Doesn’t sound like much until the design and Total breaker cost alone.....Would cost limping it along compared to a new setup period. Been eyeing the square D stuff , but I’m an amateur as far as electrical is concerned. Too bad the box isn’t inside.

[Taterhead]

I’m an amateur too but I think the square D stuff is pretty good. It’s fairly prevalent down here

[jtinluvr]

My understanding is some Zinsco stuff is of dubious quality and widely known for electrical fires. The inspector of my home said I should be suspicious and have an electrician look at it. Did a little online research and said fuck that and replaced it with an Eaton BR panel with plug on neutrals since current codes pretty much have GFCI/AFCI everywhere. Mine was a sub panel so didn’t need to deal with the utility, but if your is a main panel maybe the utility has an upgrade program, especially if you have a 100 amp service.

[BLUE]

I’m an amateur too but I think the square D stuff is pretty good. It’s fairly prevalent down here

Always good to hear

My understanding is some Zinsco stuff is of dubious quality and widely known for electrical fires. The inspector of my home said I should be suspicious and have an electrician look at it. Did a little online research and said fuck that and replaced it with an Eaton BR panel with plug on neutrals since current codes pretty much have GFCI/AFCI everywhere. Mine was a sub panel so didn’t need to deal with the utility, but if your is a main panel maybe the utility has an upgrade program, especially if you have a 100 amp service.

Oh ,For sure . Zinsco indeed is a hazard. I’ve rarely had to deal with this design until owning this current house. Every single one of those bad breakers (replace to get by for the moment) I’ve pulled out were by far the worst I’ve seen in my life (granted it is an assumed original 47-year old BR panel).

Yup, I do have a 100amp main panel ( no sub ) , and I honestly never thought about a sponsored utility upgrade program. Not sure why ? Definitely going to look into it , appreciated.

[jtinluvr]

Tell them you have a Zinsco, maybe they’ll sympathetic if they don’t have a program or rebate or whatnot. Never hurts to ask. My house was/is fucked up. I can tell the PO upgraded to a 200 amp service maybe 15 years ago, and there was also 2 sub panels (the Zinsco and what I believe is the original 1967 GE). Not sure what the deal was with having 2 sub panels side by side, but when I had the roof structure replaced, I got the Eaton panel to replace the 2 old sub panel, The 200amp panel probably had enough space to not need a dedicated sub, but I tend to like smaller fixture counts on circuits than what code allows.

[BLUE]

Thought I replied ^

Never does hurt to ask ! A couple of my circuits on my house I feel have more fixtures than really should be. 200amp exterior plug on neutral metered box upgrade only makes sense. I’d like to add at least 3-circuits ideally into the home. Also , by comparison I still can’t believe how much Tandem AFCI breakers cost In comparison , oh well code is code.

If a program could help foot the cost , I’d love to move this way up the list of things to do for sure. I’m mostly wondering how hard it’ll be to drive/drill in ground rods into this wonderful clay soil here. I can see that taking a long time to achieve. We currently have galvanized water pipe grounded out to. Need to have my property surveyed , and lines marked (although the last time they did this they were way WAY off....)

Current outside metered exterior zinsco garbage. I replaced the (3) “Connecticut electric” new grey bodied breakers. Old ones were pretty pooched... Zinsco bus Bars looked fine on those contact points , but we all know how looks can go...


I need look into requirements of different Electric hookupS if nothing else for The thrust of knowledge for myself. I don’t plan on owning electric vehicles for now , but who knows ? I’m sure we’ll be forced into solar like everyone else at some point. I’ll definitely research that for sure. I doubt that one can be avoided in the future..