Jim Katen

14 hours ago, Marc said:

It would work fine if the black wire was the return for a switched circuit.  The lower white would be the supply and the upper white delivered a neutral connection to whatever was being switched.

I see how that could work. But if that's what's going on, whoever did it must be cognitively impaired. 

It would also violate 404.2(C) (neutrals have to run to switches)  

If it's installed on every step, then the risers will all be the same height (assuming that the carriages are cut properly). What's on the line about it? 

Looks like something out of Twin Peaks. 

At least some laminate flooring manufacturers make those step nosings and say to install them that way in their installation instructions. I also find them very annoying. 

Is that a Carlo Rossi gallon sized jug of Paisano wine? My favorite. 

11 hours ago, Chad Fabry said:

I suppose the energized white wire is feeding the bottom cable black wire. The upper white wire is the neutral for the black wire.  I wonder if the ground wire was acting as a neutral for the bottom black load.

The single breaker could control two  loads anywhere in the house from the one location. I can't think of any compelling reason to wire it that way. 

Possibly. This one just makes my brain hurt. 

15 hours ago, Marc said:

Was there a wall switch nearby?

It's in a garage with several nearby switches, but nothing out of the ordinary. All of the switches seemed to work fine. 

15 hours ago, John Ghent said:

Is the red wire lower left fried? And the one above marked Kitchen?

Yes. In fact it was fizzing the whole time I was trying to figure out everything else. I eventually pulled that breaker, tightened it up, and put it back just because the fizzing noise was bothersome. 

OK. I'm stumped. 

A cable enters this panel from the lower left side and exits the panel at the upper left side. 

This cable's black wire runs through the panel uninterrupted. 

This cable's lower white wire lands on a 20-amp breaker. 

This cable's upper white wire lands on the neutral terminal bar. 

Of course, nothing is labeled.

What do you suppose someone was trying to achieve here? 

What do you suppose he did achieve here? 

Well, it doesn't meet 311.7.4.3: A nosing not less than 3/4 inch but not more than 1-1/4 inches shall be provided on stairways with solid risers. 

Just because Twinkletoes Simon doesn't trip on it doesn't mean others won't. 

At the very least, they should remove the portion of the foam that's inside the enclosure. Is the whole wall filled with foam? 

If it's sewer gas, sticking a rag in the drain will stop it. Try that for a day or two and see if the smell goes away. If it does, you have a sewer gas problem. If it doesn't forget about the sewer gas and look for something else. 

1 hour ago, Marc said:

I'd say that the inlaid deadbolts at top and bottom do not meet the egress requirement.

Why not? Nothing in the code rules them out. I see egress doors with deadbolts and, indeed, multiple deadbolts often. Is having them inset in the stile really that much of a barrier to egress ? 

13 hours ago, Jim Baird said:

Thanks guys.

Chad did not say yes or no.  Jim K. says yes, but Jim B. says no.  Patio set is two doors, not one.  Neither leaf when swung makes it.

Nothing in the code requires the door to have only one leaf. Double doors are used for egress in multifamily all the time. 

Yes, providing it just has normal hardware that people can operate without a tool, key, special knowledge, or special effort. 

I agree. It's a homemade security hinge. 

Interesting. It's only slightly larger than the little toffee hammer that I carry with me during my inspections. 

Rheem/Ruud put their circuit boards inside metal enclosures in the blower compartment, which protects them pretty well from moisture and dirt. I suspect that it is, indeed, heat from the resistors, but it seems odd. I've looked at thousands of these things and never seen discoloration from resistors like this. I find myself wondering if this is a slow-moving failure in progress. 

I think it might have been Andy Dufresne's old house. 

I can't recall having seen this before. It's a 1993 Ruud gas furnace. The circuit board is toasted at the upper right corner, behind all of those resistors. 

Any idea what's going on here? 

The stairwell only requires a guard where there's "walking surface" beside it. I'd have a hard time calling that a walking surface. 

I believe that Scott Warga is in Gilbert. 

https://acsillc.com/

Not that I'm aware of. 

7 hours ago, Marc said:

Not worth writing up.

What's that solid aluminum doing on an 86' house?  Aluminum wiring left the residential market in 72'.  That's worth checking out.

You can still get #8 solid aluminum SE cable. I see it about once a month. 

Sure, but I can't remember *ever* using all the burners on high at the same time. . .