Fine Copper Sinks

I just moved into a new home, and there is a light that is above the kitchen sink. This light is on a pull chain so there is no switch that powers it on or off. I would like to remove it and just place a cap over the hole. What should I do with the wiring inside of the outlet.

The house is circa 1930 so it only has the black and white copper lines running through the house, and the outlet is on an edison fuse box.

Do I just put caps on the ends of both wires and cover it up or is there something else that needs to be done?

Thanks

Purchase electrical wire nuts and place them on the ends of the wires. then buy a junction box cover and screw it onto the box where you removed the light fixture. This cover can not be permanently covered up, per code.

2 Comments »

what do you guys think? I want to know how other people feel about what I just read thanks♥
The True Cost of Recycling
——————————————————————————–
By Larry H. – 2007-04-13
Recycling waste uses double the energy consumption and causes twice the pollution from factories, trucks, byproducts etc.

Preparing the recyclable material uses more energy and creates as much waste and byproducts as using raw materials.

Lets take a look at a plastic pop bottle for example and start at the beginning of the recycle chain.

The bottle is prepared for the recycle bin:

First the plastic bottle is washed, usually in the kitchen sink with running tap water – Water is wasted – Electricity is consumed to drive the pumps that supply the water to your home. Electricity is often produced by
burning either oil, gas or coal. These resources require mining, drilling machines, haulage etc. These machines are built from… (A bit like the old woman who swallowed a fly isn’t it?)

a) The pop bottle is then placed in a plastic recycle bin:

Factories with special tools and machines to manufacture the bins are needed – Factories and tools require steel and other minerals to be mined to construct them. A huge amount of electricity is needed to run the manufacturing machines in the factories. Dangerous chemicals are used in the process of manufacturing the plastic recycle bins, not to mention pollution and hazardous waste the factories produce.
or
b) The plastic bottle is taken to a recycle machine that crushes the bottle. Once again factories are built to manufacture the machines….(here we go again). Raw materials used in the process of creating the can and plastic bottle crushing machines include steel, plastics, lead, copper, paper, ink, computer boards and chips (The number of toxic materials needed to make silicon chips include – highly corrosive hydrochloric acid, arsenic, cadmium, lead, and volatile solvents like methyl chloroform, benzene, acetone, trichloroethane, and a number of super toxic gases. Electricity is consumed to power these recycle machines.

A special recycle truck picks up your recycle bin or collects the bottles from the depositing points:

Special trucks are need to collect the recyclable waste. More raw materials including steel, copper, rubber, paints, and plastics are used to build the trucks. The trucks need oils, grease, coolants and fuel to run
(these all have to be mined), not to mention the extra pollutants put out by exhaust fumes from the extra trucks on the road, (It has been said that diesel exhaust fumes are one of the top two most carcinogenic

substances known to man.)

The trucks deliver the recyclable material to a sorting factory:

Factories and machines are built to sort the various recyclable materials from each other, paper, plastics, glass, metals etc. Specially made separating, crushing and chipping machines (these all have to be purposely built for the job) process the recyclable waste to more manageable and usable sizes ready for transport and sale to factories.

The raw recyclable materials are transported to goods manufacturing factories:

The material is transported via trucks (more trucks on the road), trains, ships etc. (all requiring more resources to be built and to operate) to various factories that produce new goods from the materials. The goods are shipped to shops and ware houses to be sold and once their service life is over the chain starts again.

Recycling will not save trees because we are now replanting at least as many trees as we cut down.

But don’t we also recycle because of a shortage of landfill areas?

It has been calculated that a thousand years of garbage would only fill an area 35 miles square by 100 yards deep.

Recycling costs.

Practically all recycling programs run at a loss.

That article is absolute crap. It’s made up of purely subjective measurements. How can you claim "The True Price of Recycling" when you don’t calculate any prices.

Every one of the "costs" associated with recycling occurs with raw materials as well (but to a greater degree).

a) Oooo we might have to produce plastic recycling bins. What the hell are garbage bins made out of?

b) Hmmm we had to crush the cans to make something new. What about processing the bauxite required to make new aluminum?

c) Special trucks to pick up the materials? Hmmm I was under the impression that garbage needed trucks to take it away too. I guess I must be on drugs.

Yes, there is costs associated with recycling (that’s why reduce and reuse come first). HOWEVER, when the WHOLE life cycle of a product is looked at, recycling ALWAYS comes out on top. Granted, some materials are better than others. Recycled aluminum only uses 5% of the energy as new aluminum. Recycled glass isn’t much better than new (95% of the energy). If you want a good article on it, National Geographic did one a few months back (sorry, I can’t remember the exact month).

12 Comments »

Last month, I bought a house. The seller claimed that it was well-maintained, in "excellent condition." The inspector I hired said it was a great starter home. He said it was in move-in condition, copper plumbing and good electrical.

In reality, it’s been a real-life Tom Hanks movie—-the money pit. When we took the rugs out, we found water damage. When we took wall paneling down, we found no insulation, unsealed windows and doors. The "copper plumbing" was rotting. The pipe under one of the bathrooms wasn’t connected to the sewer line. The pipes from the laundry area were connected to the toilet and to the kitchen sink.

The electrical was a disaster. 1 line fed the whole house; there were burnt wires everywhere. And they used plastic instead of metal casings.

The buyer’s agent I had has been of no use; he already got his commission.

It’s costing me about $50,000 (at last count) to move into my "move-in condition," "excellent condition" house.

Try Angel N Vierra
1012 W Beverly Blvd
323-394-6609

1 Comment »

I’m looking in to buying a house, but before I put in an offer I want an estimate of how much it would cost to update and repair some things. The house was built in 1929, and it’s in Connecticut (not the rich area though, LoL!) It’s an estate sale, and the previous owner bought the house in the mid-sixties. I’m pretty sure no major updates have been made since at least then. It’s just over 1,000 square feet with one bathroom. It’s one story with an unfinished basement and a walk up attic.

It still has copper plumbing. It looks like there’s some oxidation in some places like under the kitchen sink. Is this something I should worry about, and what might be a round estimate to update it?

It still has a fuse box. I don’t know what the amperage is though. I am interested in updating it to 200 amps (and maybe adding 2-3 overhead lights in a couple rooms). What can I expect that this might cost?

I’m not looking for exact prices, but I’d love to know a roundabout figure of how much it would cost to update the house so I can see if I can afford it or not.

This would be my first house, so if there’s any other advice on other things I should look out for, I’d love to hear it!

It really depends on the local labor market and how busy each contractor is when you want the work done. To install new electrical wiring, the walls need to be opened enough for the wires to be pulled into the new locations. If you open the walls and do the repairs after the fact it will be less expensive but it takes time and effort on your part. For new construction or remodels where the wall are open and accessible, I figure about $100/ box plus the main system and meter base which you need. For a small project with limited access which I suspect is your situation, double that. When you do the upgrade, all of the wiring should be replaced and the whole house brought up to current codes. This means you need a local qualified professional electrician to give the estimates and probably to do the work. Old wiring is quite dangerous if the insulation has started to deteriorate, it can and has caused many house fires.
A kitchen electrical needs at least 6 circuits, add a bathroom and exterior outlets, 2 lighting circuits, 2 more outlet circuits and a fire alarm plus a pump if needed and you are in need of a 32 circuit panel very fast. This allows for expansion with a dedicated computer circuit and a home entertainment center and a hot tub in the future. I suggest you call the local electrical contractors and ask.

4 Comments »

Balanced between two times, the Old Tahoe days of yesteryear and the Tahoe of the New Millennium is this spectacular custom home, nestled in the quiet of Crystal Bay, Nevada. Granite boulders and views of the sparkling cobalt waters of Lake Tahoe, combined with enhanced natural landscaping on this level piece of ground invite you to enjoy the outdoors from the moment you arrive.

The entry is flanked by reclaimed timbers found in the Sierra Nevada mountains, a piece of yesterday that by using it preserves a piece of tomorrow. Open the door and, adjacent to the garage, you will be attracted to the hand crafted manzanita railing and floating wooden stairs drawing you to the upper floor. Before you go, stop and take the time to visit the two bedrooms and two baths on this floor, one a master suite. From here, choose the stairs or the elevator and arrive up to the great room with hand scraped hickory flooring and a granite fireplace to compliment the boulders of the area. Reclaimed timber mantle and reclaimed timber deck railings tie in with the entry.

The powder room has a stone sink and wooden slab counter top with tile detailing. On this, as well as the entry level, you will find closets with ample room for your guest’s coats.

The kitchen is complete with pantry, AGA stove, and an unusual granite where crystals formed within the surface thousands of years ago, crystals for Crystal Bay. The microwave is actually a drawer and the country sink oversized. There is a faucet for filling pots at the stove as well as a prep sink in the island. Set up for the gourmet chef, the conveniences will please the cook who usually makes reservations, too.

On this level is also the grand master suite complete with walk-in closet and see-through fireplace from the bedroom to the bath. The bath has extensive use of marble and interesting tile patterns, a steam shower, soaking tub and a heated towel bar for luxury after bathing. The suite includes it’s own washer and dryer as well as built-in cabinetry with a custom wood slab top.

Take the elevator to the lowest level and arrive at the gathering room. Slate floors make for easy living as you enter from the yard. This level also has the main laundry room, a theater room and another bedroom and bath. For convenience there is a wet bar complete with refrigerator and ice maker as well as a copper sink and a custom wood slab top.

Every detail has been attended to from the central vacuum to the custom doors, from the specialty light fixtures to the in floor radiant heating. This is the home of dreams, waiting for you to make your dreams come true.

Owner/agent

^

That is my moms flier for 28 somers loop, I am trying to sell it for her. Please E-mail me at somers.loop@yahoo.com or go to my myspace
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=437585557 for more deatails.

I really want to give her the offer as a christmas presnt so please read and tell me how I could sell it quick and easy, please help!

The ad is too wordy for me to read all of it. When I am looking for a home first I look at the location then price, bedrooms, baths, year built, acreage and pictures. I don’t really care about the sellers opinion of the amount I will enjoy a feature. They might think a floating stairway is cool where I see stairs I think I don’t want to deal with stairs.

1 Comment »